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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 · lash · tear · ground · shower · pit · dip · cabinet

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. prune — to trim
  3. dip — to sink
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. tear — to rip
  6. ground — a position
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. shower — rain
  9. ground — the earth
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. ground — crushed
  12. tear — from crying
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — to wash
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pit — a hole
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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