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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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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: land · cap · wound · vault · rest · squash · stem · prune

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cap — a hat
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — a country
  6. rest — a break
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a lid
  10. stem — to come from
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. vault — a safe
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rest — what's left
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. rest — what's left
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. cap — of ice
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. squash — the sport
  23. land — ground
  24. wound — an injury

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