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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: date · racket · present · stem · squash · spell · capital · cell

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. squash — to crush
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. capital — a city
  6. cell — in biology
  7. spell — letters
  8. capital — money
  9. stem — to come from
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — a gift
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. present — there
  17. spell — a short time
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. spell — magic
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. cell — a phone
  22. date — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. racket — for tennis

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