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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 120 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 · dip · wound · rash · present · band · racket · shower

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  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. band — a music group
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rash — hasty
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. shower — rain
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. rash — a series
  13. shower — to wash
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. present — a gift
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. dip — to sink
  19. present — the time now
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. band — a ring
  23. present — there
  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