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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: squash · chest · bear · date · vault · cap · perch · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. perch — the fish
  3. squash — the sport
  4. date — the fruit
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. squash — to crush
  9. vault — a safe
  10. chest — a box
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. fork — in a road
  14. cap — of ice
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bear — the animal
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. bear — the animal

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