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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: wind · temple · prune · bass · pound · cue · shower · cap

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. pound — a weight
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. shower — rain
  17. cap — a lid
  18. shower — to wash
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bass — the fish
  21. cap — a hat
  22. bass — low music
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. cap — of ice

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