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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: tube · rest · capital · snap · hand · scale · prune · board

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. scale — in music
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. tube — a container
  7. rest — what's left
  8. capital — a city
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. capital — money
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. board — a committee
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. scale — size or range
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. board — to get on
  18. tube — the underground
  19. rest — a break
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — help
  22. rest — what's left
  23. snap — to click
  24. tube — in a tire

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