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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: prune · jam · key · cell · cabinet · arm · band · perch

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cell — a phone
  3. prune — to trim
  4. perch — the fish
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. band — a music group
  11. key — the most important part
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. band — a ring
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. key — in music
  21. key — for a lock
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. prune — to trim
  24. prune — the fruit

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