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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: toast · shower · cap · kid · hand · root · prune · calf

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. prune — to trim
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. root — of a plant
  5. toast — bread
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. shower — to wash
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cap — a hat
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. root — of a word
  12. cap — a lid
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. root — the cause
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. kid — to tease
  20. cap — of ice
  21. kid — child
  22. hand — help
  23. shower — rain
  24. prune — to trim

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