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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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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: prune · patient · squash · bank · season · stick · club · straw

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. squash — to crush
  6. club — for dancing
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. prune — to trim
  11. season — of the year
  12. club — for golf
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bank — for money
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. bank — of a river
  18. squash — the sport
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. club — a group
  21. season — in sport
  22. bank — for money
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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