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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: fine · dip · drill · capital · clip · lean · prune · pit

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. drill — a practice
  3. capital — a city
  4. lean — to bend
  5. fine — all right
  6. clip — to cut
  7. fine — high quality
  8. drill — the tool
  9. lean — thin
  10. prune — to trim
  11. drill — army training
  12. clip — a video
  13. capital — money
  14. dip — to sink
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. clip — for paper
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a hole
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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