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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 116 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: bulb · file · patient · spring · shower · cabinet · prune · game

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bulb — for light
  3. shower — to wash
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. prune — to trim
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. prune — to trim
  12. spring — the season
  13. bulb — for light
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a line of people
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. game — wild animals
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. spring — of water
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. spring — a coil
  24. shower — rain

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