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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: mate · cap · prune · capital · rash · staff · wind · trunk

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. prune — to trim
  4. rash — a series
  5. cap — a lid
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. capital — a city
  8. staff — employees
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mate — a partner
  15. wind — moving air
  16. staff — a stick
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rash — hasty
  19. mate — a friend
  20. cap — a hat
  21. staff — employees
  22. capital — money
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. mate — to breed

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