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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: prune · capital · cap · bore · bass · perch · wind · press

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. perch — the fish
  3. capital — money
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bore — to drill
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. press — newspapers
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cap — of ice
  11. capital — a city
  12. cap — a hat
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. press — to push
  19. press — a publisher
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bass — low music
  24. wind — to turn a key

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