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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: capital · rule · land · bound · prune · vault · sharp · field

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. rule — government
  4. prune — to trim
  5. capital — a city
  6. field — a subject
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bound — certain
  9. land — ground
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. field — for sport
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. rule — a law
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bound — obliged
  17. sharp — clever
  18. field — farmland
  19. capital — money
  20. prune — to trim
  21. land — a country
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bound — tied together
  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