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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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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: present · squash · object · fan · prune · jam · content · field

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. prune — to trim
  4. squash — the sport
  5. present — a gift
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. object — to protest
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. squash — to crush
  14. field — a subject
  15. prune — to trim
  16. present — there
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — a thing
  19. content — happy
  20. field — for sport
  21. content — the amount
  22. field — farmland
  23. present — the time now
  24. squash — the vegetable

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