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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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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: staff · straw · prune · capital · craft · jam · rule · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rule — a law
  4. prune — to trim
  5. staff — employees
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rule — government
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. craft — boats
  12. capital — a city
  13. staff — employees
  14. craft — a skill
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. fork — in a road
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. capital — money
  23. staff — a stick
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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