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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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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. prune — to trim
  7. net — after costs
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. march — the month
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. board — a committee
  12. net — for catching
  13. craft — boats
  14. shower — to wash
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. march — the month
  18. net — in sport
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. craft — a skill
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. march — music
  24. board — to get on

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