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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 120 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: season · squash · bat · bound · pitch · last · lash · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. bound — obliged
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. last — finally
  5. bound — tied together
  6. squash — to crush
  7. prune — to trim
  8. season — of the year
  9. bound — certain
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. season — in sport
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. last — final
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. prune — to trim
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bat — the animal
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. squash — the sport
  24. last — to go on

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