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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 120 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: last · drill · pop · board · club · game · scale · prune

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. last — final
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. drill — army training
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — to visit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. board — a committee
  11. prune — to trim
  12. last — finally
  13. club — a group
  14. scale — size or range
  15. drill — a practice
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. game — wild animals
  18. club — for golf
  19. pop — music
  20. last — to go on
  21. board — to get on
  22. scale — in music
  23. drill — the tool
  24. board — a flat piece

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