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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · date · prune · field · track · snap · lash · squash

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  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. fork — to eat with
  2. squash — to crush
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. field — for sport
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. track — to keep track
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. squash — the sport
  12. track — a path
  13. date — the fruit
  14. track — a song
  15. snap — to click
  16. field — farmland
  17. fork — in a road
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. field — a subject
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  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