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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: saw · wound · coach · capital · trunk · hand · chip · prune

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a city
  4. hand — help
  5. prune — to trim
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. hand — in cards
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. saw — the tool
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. prune — to trim
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. chip — for betting
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. wound — an injury
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chip — to eat
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. saw — the tool
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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