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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rash — a series
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. row — to paddle
  5. spring — of water
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — a line
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. spring — the season
  16. rash — hasty
  17. tube — a container
  18. swing — music
  19. squash — the sport
  20. tube — the underground
  21. prune — to trim
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — to play on
  24. spring — a coil

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