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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: shower · court · plane · key · prune · club · fine · bore

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. fine — high quality
  4. court — of law
  5. key — in music
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bore — to drill
  9. club — for golf
  10. key — the most important part
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — for sport
  13. prune — to trim
  14. fine — all right
  15. key — for a lock
  16. club — for dancing
  17. club — a group
  18. bore — to tire
  19. prune — to trim
  20. plane — a tool
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

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