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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 · bear · squash · race · prune · net · spell · vault

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  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. squash — the sport
  2. spell — magic
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. vault — a safe
  6. cell — in biology
  7. squash — to crush
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. bear — the animal
  10. spell — letters
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bear — the animal
  15. race — a contest
  16. spell — a short time
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. net — in sport
  23. prune — to trim
  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