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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. prune — to trim
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. last — final
  7. last — to go on
  8. pitch — completely
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bear — the animal
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — bread
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bear — the animal
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. drill — a practice
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. squash — the sport
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. last — finally

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