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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: shower · club · jam · cabinet · root · hand · trunk · tube

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. hand — in cards
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — a container
  5. root — the cause
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. shower — to wash
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. club — for golf
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. shower — rain
  24. hand — help

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