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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cell · mark · prune · safe · capital · pound · mine · club

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cell — a phone
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. capital — money
  8. mark — a grade
  9. pound — a weight
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. club — for golf
  13. club — a group
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — in biology
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. club — for dancing
  22. prune — to trim
  23. capital — a city
  24. prune — to trim

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com