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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. squash — the sport
  4. land — to come down
  5. bank — for money
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chest — of your body
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. perch — the fish
  12. land — a country
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bank — of a river
  15. squash — to crush
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. content — happy
  18. chest — of your body
  19. land — ground
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bank — for money
  23. content — the amount
  24. leaves — lets stay

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