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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: squash · present · mine · game · calf · prune · pop · fall

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. fall — to drop
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. game — wild animals
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — to crush
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. fall — the season
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. prune — to trim
  14. game — a match
  15. present — there
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. pop — soda
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. present — a gift
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. mine — for digging

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