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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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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: cap · spring · trunk · prune · pit · rule · current · mate

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. mate — a friend
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — the season
  5. cap — of ice
  6. current — happening now
  7. current — of water
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rule — government
  11. cap — a lid
  12. rule — a law
  13. mate — to breed
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. current — electric
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a hole
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cap — a hat

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