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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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468
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: ball · prune · track · capital · spring · shower · board · plane

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. spring — a coil
  3. board — a committee
  4. prune — to trim
  5. capital — a city
  6. prune — to trim
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. shower — to wash
  11. plane — a tool
  12. track — to keep track
  13. track — a song
  14. shower — rain
  15. spring — of water
  16. ball — a great time
  17. board — to get on
  18. track — a path
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. spring — the season
  21. ball — a dance
  22. capital — money
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. capital — a big letter

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