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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: perch · hide · spring · shower · bark · squash · tear · bore

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. tear — from crying
  3. squash — to crush
  4. spring — the season
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. tear — to rip
  9. spring — a coil
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bore — to drill
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. bore — to tire
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. perch — the fish
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. squash — the sport
  21. shower — rain
  22. tear — from crying
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — to wash

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