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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · snap · chair · trunk · pop · season · date · squash

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. clip — a video
  4. pop — soda
  5. clip — to cut
  6. pop — music
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. clip — for paper
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. date — the fruit
  13. chair — a leader
  14. season — of the year
  15. squash — the sport
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. season — in sport
  18. snap — to click
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. pop — to visit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. trunk — of a car

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