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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: calf · prune · file · bowl · shower · chest · charge · hide

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. chest — of your body
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. file — a tool
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. charge — electricity
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. shower — to wash
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. file — a line of people
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. charge — in control
  18. file — a document
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. charge — a price
  23. shower — rain
  24. chest — of your body

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