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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: land · pop · squash · chest · plane · pit · suit · spring

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. squash — the sport
  3. chest — of your body
  4. suit — clothes
  5. plane — a tool
  6. pit — in a race
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — the season
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — to visit
  12. suit — in cards
  13. chest — a box
  14. pit — a hole
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. chest — of your body
  17. land — to come down
  18. squash — to crush
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. land — ground
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. pop — soda
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. suit — to fit

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