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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.

Make a worksheet

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: shower · coach · chair · lash · stick · current · prune · hide

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. prune — to trim
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. shower — to wash
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. current — of water
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. chair — a leader
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. shower — rain
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. prune — to trim
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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