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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.

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: cold · bank · season · squash · pitch · row · prune · tube

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. pitch — completely
  5. season — in sport
  6. squash — the sport
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cold — not warm
  13. season — of the year
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. squash — to crush
  16. cold — an illness
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bank — for money
  19. tube — a container
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bank — of a river
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. bank — for money
  24. tube — the underground

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