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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: cell · leaves · squash · date · mine · game · branch · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. squash — to crush
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cell — in biology
  5. mine — for digging
  6. game — a match
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. last — final
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. last — to go on
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. branch — a division
  17. game — wild animals
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. squash — the sport
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — a phone

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