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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 · prune · wound · rule · pass · racket · pit · game

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. squash — the sport
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rule — a law
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rule — government
  11. pit — a hole
  12. game — a match
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. wound — an injury
  16. prune — to trim
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pass — a permit
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. game — wild animals
  24. prune — to trim

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