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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: dip · shower · prune · squash · trunk · plane · scale · game

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. plane — a tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. shower — rain
  10. squash — the sport
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. prune — to trim
  16. game — wild animals
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. game — a match
  22. squash — to crush
  23. dip — to sink
  24. trunk — of a tree

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