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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: craft · land · capital · saw · prune · cap · coach · dip

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. capital — a city
  3. prune — to trim
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. cap — a lid
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. craft — boats
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. land — ground
  14. cap — a hat
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. cap — of ice
  17. prune — to trim
  18. land — a country
  19. dip — to sink
  20. capital — money
  21. craft — a skill
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. land — to come down

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