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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 116 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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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: march · track · prune · rule · shower · rock · saw · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. prune — to trim
  3. shower — to wash
  4. rock — music
  5. track — a song
  6. march — the month
  7. saw — the tool
  8. march — the month
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. track — to keep track
  11. saw — the tool
  12. shower — rain
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. object — a thing
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. march — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — government
  20. track — a path
  21. prune — to trim
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. object — an aim

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