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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 120 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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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: lash · spell · prune · tear · fork · row · board · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. spell — a short time
  3. board — to get on
  4. spell — magic
  5. board — a committee
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. fork — in a road
  8. tear — from crying
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. row — to paddle
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. tear — to rip
  19. spell — letters
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. tear — from crying
  23. capital — a city
  24. prune — to trim

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