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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: rush · foot · shower · mug · land · lash · bark · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. land — ground
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. shower — rain
  5. mug — a cup
  6. bark — to shout
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. shower — to wash
  9. mug — to rob
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. mug — a face
  12. foot — a measure
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. land — to come down
  16. rush — hurry
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. land — a country
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. prune — to trim
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. rush — to hurry

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