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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 120 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: craft · chair · file · mark · fall · prune · coach · shower

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. prune — to trim
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. shower — rain
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a skill
  9. prune — to trim
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. file — a tool
  12. file — a line of people
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — a trace
  19. fall — the season
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. shower — to wash
  24. file — a document

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