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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: pop · mug · prune · cabinet · pitch · capital · last · shower

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. last — finally
  4. shower — to wash
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — to visit
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. capital — a city
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. last — to go on
  12. mug — to rob
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. mug — a cup
  17. last — final
  18. prune — to trim
  19. shower — rain
  20. mug — a face
  21. capital — money
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pop — music

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