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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: bat · prune · stand · bear · chest · present · squash · net

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — to crush
  5. net — in sport
  6. squash — the sport
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. prune — to trim
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. net — after costs
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — a box
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. net — for catching
  21. present — there
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bat — the animal
  24. present — a gift

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