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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fan · arm · mine · shower · court · bore · bowl · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. mine — for digging
  3. prune — to trim
  4. shower — rain
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. court — of a king
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bore — to tire
  17. court — for sport
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. prune — to trim
  24. court — of law

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