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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.

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: lash · prune · wind · foot · season · rash · pop · capital

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — to visit
  5. foot — a measure
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. capital — a city
  8. prune — to trim
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. capital — money
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. pop — music
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. rash — a series
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wind — moving air
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. wind — moving air
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. season — in sport

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