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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 124 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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Word bank
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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: track · jam · wound · leaves · capital · band · prune · present

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. wound — an injury
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. prune — to trim
  7. present — a gift
  8. capital — a city
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. capital — money
  11. track — a path
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. band — a music group
  14. present — there
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. present — the time now
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wound — an injury
  19. track — to keep track
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. track — a song
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. leaves — to go away

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