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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: squash · spring · foot · file · fine · bass · suit · date

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. squash — the sport
  3. suit — to fit
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bass — low music
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. file — a tool
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. date — the fruit
  10. spring — of water
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — clothes
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. file — a document
  17. fine — all right
  18. spring — the season
  19. foot — a measure
  20. bass — the fish
  21. file — a line of people
  22. spring — a coil
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. squash — to crush

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