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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: prune · band · current · nail · capital · fall · stem · cue

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  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. band — a music group
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a city
  6. fall — to drop
  7. cue — for pool
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. fall — the season
  11. current — electric
  12. fall — to drop
  13. cue — a signal
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. current — happening now
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. current — of water
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. band — a ring
  22. cue — a hint
  23. nail — on a finger
  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