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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. land — a country
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. shower — rain
  10. land — to come down
  11. pound — a weight
  12. bank — for money
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. rule — a law
  15. bank — of a river
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rash — a series
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. land — ground
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bank — for money
  24. rule — government

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