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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: fall · mark · foot · capital · bowl · saw · prune · hand

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. fall — to drop
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. fall — the season
  8. prune — to trim
  9. capital — a city
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. mark — a trace
  12. fall — to drop
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. hand — in cards
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. hand — help
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — money
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. mark — a grade
  24. foot — a measure

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