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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: can · scale · pop · shower · cell · field · jam · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. scale — size or range
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. field — for sport
  5. cell — in biology
  6. can — a tin
  7. shower — rain
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. shower — to wash
  11. field — a subject
  12. pop — music
  13. field — farmland
  14. squash — to crush
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. pop — to visit
  19. pop — soda
  20. can — to be able to
  21. scale — in music
  22. squash — the sport
  23. cell — a phone
  24. can — a tin

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