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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 116 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: prune · staff · can · spell · race · rule · fan · squash

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. rule — government
  4. race — humankind
  5. can — a tin
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — magic
  8. rule — a law
  9. spell — a short time
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. staff — employees
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. squash — the sport
  14. prune — to trim
  15. can — to be able to
  16. race — a contest
  17. staff — a stick
  18. race — the arms race
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. can — a tin
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. prune — to trim
  23. staff — employees
  24. fan — a supporter

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