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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 · club · land · pitcher · cabinet · ground · hand · suit

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — for golf
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ground — the earth
  6. land — a country
  7. suit — clothes
  8. land — to come down
  9. hand — in cards
  10. suit — in cards
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. prune — to trim
  15. land — ground
  16. suit — to fit
  17. hand — help
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. club — a group
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. pitcher — a jug

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