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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: bat · lash · bound · net · capital · bulb · prune · press

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bound — tied together
  5. press — newspapers
  6. bulb — for light
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bound — obliged
  9. press — to push
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. net — in sport
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. net — after costs
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. capital — money
  18. prune — to trim
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bound — certain
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. capital — a city
  23. press — a publisher
  24. capital — a big letter

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