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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 · branch · snap · perch · spell · wax · shower · bear

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. perch — the fish
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. prune — to trim
  6. spell — letters
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. shower — rain
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. snap — to click
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bear — the animal
  15. spell — a short time
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. branch — a division
  23. bear — the animal
  24. spell — magic

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