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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: trunk · rush · snap · season · content · squash · roll · fine

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. snap — to click
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. roll — a cake
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. squash — the sport
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. squash — to crush
  15. content — happy
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. content — the amount
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. rush — hurry
  24. roll — a list

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