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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: capital · prune · stem · spring · perch · cap · press · fork

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. capital — money
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. spring — of water
  9. cap — a lid
  10. capital — a city
  11. spring — a coil
  12. press — newspapers
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. press — a publisher
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. spring — the season
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cap — a hat
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. stem — to come from
  22. press — to push
  23. cap — of ice
  24. prune — the fruit

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