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

Word bank: prune · safe · pitcher · shower · rule · wound · stock · wake

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. shower — to wash
  5. wound — an injury
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stock — goods
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wound — an injury
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. stock — shares
  22. rule — a law
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. rule — government

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