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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: capital · prune · stem · fall · bulb · sharp · branch · mate

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. branch — a division
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. stem — to come from
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bulb — for light
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. prune — to trim
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. mate — a friend
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. fall — to drop
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. fall — the season
  18. bulb — for light
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. mate — a partner
  21. mate — to breed
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. capital — money
  24. fall — to drop

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