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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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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: bulb · fall · cold · scale · rock · prune · trunk · club

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. scale — size or range
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. cold — an illness
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. prune — to trim
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cold — not warm
  18. rock — a stone
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. club — for dancing
  22. scale — in music
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rock — music

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