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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: squash · bat · rest · bank · plane · rush · prune · cold

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bat — the animal
  3. plane — a tool
  4. bank — of a river
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bank — for money
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cold — not warm
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rest — a break
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bank — for money
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rest — what's left
  21. squash — the sport
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rest — what's left
  24. squash — the vegetable

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