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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: jam · prune · game · trunk · shower · drill · scale · deal

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. scale — size or range
  3. drill — army training
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. deal — to handle
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. game — wild animals
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. shower — to wash
  17. drill — a practice
  18. prune — to trim
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. shower — rain
  21. game — a match
  22. scale — in music
  23. drill — the tool
  24. jam — in traffic

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