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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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: season · tube · ball · prune · spring · lie · capital · staff

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. season — in sport
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — of water
  9. tube — a container
  10. ball — a great time
  11. prune — to trim
  12. season — of the year
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. ball — a dance
  16. spring — a coil
  17. capital — a city
  18. prune — to trim
  19. lie — to recline
  20. capital — money
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. staff — employees
  24. tube — the underground

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