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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · prune · ruler · fork · net · hand · squash · staff

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. fork — in a road
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. prune — to trim
  10. squash — to crush
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. hand — help
  13. net — in sport
  14. shower — rain
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. squash — the sport
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. hand — in cards
  19. staff — employees
  20. prune — to trim
  21. net — for catching
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. net — after costs
  24. ruler — for measuring

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