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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: trunk · ground · bass · mine · prune · mouse · bore · cap

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bass — low music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cap — a lid
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. cap — of ice
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bass — the fish
  13. ground — crushed
  14. prune — to trim
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bore — to drill
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. ground — a position
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cap — a hat
  24. ground — the earth

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