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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. row — to paddle
  6. staff — employees
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. prune — to trim
  9. row — a line
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bass — low music
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. band — a music group
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. band — a ring
  20. bear — the animal
  21. prune — to trim
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. shower — rain
  24. bark — to shout

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