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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. bank — for money
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bank — for money
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. present — a gift
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. fork — in a road
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bank — of a river
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. squash — to crush
  18. chair — a leader
  19. toast — bread
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. present — the time now
  24. present — there

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