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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: date · squash · ground · fan · bass · content · stick · prune

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. date — the fruit
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bass — the fish
  8. squash — the sport
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. squash — to crush
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. content — happy
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. ground — a position
  16. content — the amount
  17. ground — the earth
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. bass — low music
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. bass — the instrument

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