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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. perch — the fish
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — rain
  15. rash — a series
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. pound — a weight
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. prune — to trim
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. rash — hasty

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