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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: drill · bay · squash · rush · perch · prune · capital · fan

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. drill — army training
  4. capital — money
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — to crush
  7. rush — hurry
  8. drill — a practice
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. perch — the fish
  18. capital — a city
  19. squash — the sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. drill — the tool
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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