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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: ground · capital · prune · net · lean · content · mug · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — to bend
  5. mug — to rob
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. ground — a position
  9. mug — a cup
  10. prune — to trim
  11. net — after costs
  12. content — happy
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a line of people
  16. capital — money
  17. ground — the earth
  18. net — in sport
  19. content — the amount
  20. lean — thin
  21. capital — a city
  22. net — for catching
  23. ground — crushed
  24. mug — a face

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