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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: prune · bore · jam · hand · pitch · chest · shower · bulb

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. hand — help
  3. chest — of your body
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. prune — to trim
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bore — to tire
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. shower — rain
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. chest — a box
  21. bore — to drill
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bulb — for light
  24. jam — a tight spot

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