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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: object · prune · wound · capital · bore · shower · jam · row

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. object — a thing
  5. row — to paddle
  6. capital — a city
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bore — to tire
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — a line
  14. object — to protest
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. shower — to wash
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. capital — money
  20. object — an aim
  21. bore — to drill
  22. prune — to trim
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. capital — a big letter

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