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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: prune · ball · mug · tear · toast · shower · straw · squash

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. ball — a dance
  3. shower — rain
  4. prune — to trim
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — to crush
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mug — to rob
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. tear — to rip
  14. shower — to wash
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. ball — a great time
  17. toast — bread
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mug — a cup
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mug — a face
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. tear — from crying

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