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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 120 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: file · press · prune · foot · cold · tube · squash · cap

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. cap — a hat
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. tube — a container
  6. prune — to trim
  7. press — to push
  8. file — a tool
  9. cap — of ice
  10. file — a document
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. squash — the sport
  14. cap — a lid
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. press — newspapers
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. squash — to crush
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. press — a publisher
  21. tube — the underground
  22. file — a line of people
  23. foot — a measure
  24. foot — the bottom

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