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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. root — of a word
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. perch — the fish
  7. charge — in control
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. charge — a price
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wind — moving air
  12. root — of a plant
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. wind — moving air
  15. charge — electricity
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. root — the cause

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