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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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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: prune · stock · cabinet · bowl · kid · wound · hide · shower

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. shower — rain
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kid — to tease
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. kid — child
  12. shower — to wash
  13. stock — shares
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stock — goods
  21. wound — an injury
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bowl — to roll

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