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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: wake · row · cue · rest · squash · prune · lean · fan

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. cue — a hint
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. squash — to crush
  5. rest — a break
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. prune — to trim
  9. squash — the sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cue — a signal
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cue — for pool
  17. row — to paddle
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. rest — what's left
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. row — a line
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. rest — what's left
  24. lean — thin

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