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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. shower — rain
  3. wax — to grow
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. charge — electricity
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. charge — a price
  12. pound — a weight
  13. prune — to trim
  14. shower — to wash
  15. charge — in control
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. net — in sport
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. net — after costs
  22. wind — moving air
  23. net — for catching
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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