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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: scale · bulb · shower · firm · row · bore · squash · mine

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. firm — decided
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the sport
  6. shower — rain
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bore — to tire
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bore — to drill
  12. row — a line
  13. firm — steady
  14. scale — size or range
  15. firm — a company
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. mine — for digging
  18. row — to paddle
  19. scale — in music
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. scale — for weighing

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