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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: prune · game · leaves · content · roll · last · capital · craft

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. capital — a city
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. roll — a list
  8. craft — a skill
  9. last — finally
  10. game — a match
  11. craft — boats
  12. last — final
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. prune — to trim
  15. capital — money
  16. game — wild animals
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. content — the amount
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. content — happy
  24. roll — a cake

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