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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: sharp · racket · firm · prune · capital · mine · drill · dip

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. firm — a company
  3. dip — to sink
  4. firm — steady
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. firm — decided
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. drill — a practice
  11. prune — to trim
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. drill — the tool
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. drill — army training
  21. mine — for digging
  22. capital — money
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. sharp — clever

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