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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: content · cold · bowl · firm · pit · squash · prune · bass

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. squash — to crush
  3. bass — the fish
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. firm — a company
  7. pit — in a race
  8. squash — the sport
  9. content — the amount
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. cold — not warm
  14. content — happy
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pit — a hole
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bass — low music
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. firm — steady

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