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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: jam · scale · perch · wound · prune · fan · cabinet · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. scale — size or range
  6. wound — an injury
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wound — an injury
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. game — a match
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — to trim
  18. scale — in music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. perch — the fish
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. fan — to cool the air

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