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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: firm · last · cell · squash · suit · prune · chest · mine

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. last — finally
  4. suit — to fit
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. suit — in cards
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — of your body
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. firm — steady
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chest — of your body
  14. firm — a company
  15. last — to go on
  16. mine — for digging
  17. prune — to trim
  18. last — final
  19. suit — clothes
  20. chest — a box
  21. cell — in biology
  22. firm — decided
  23. squash — the sport
  24. mine — belonging to me

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