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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 116 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 · capital · patient · fall · bay · trunk · tube · staff

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. capital — a city
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. capital — money
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. prune — to trim
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. staff — employees
  21. tube — a container
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. tube — the underground

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