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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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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: wound · last · prune · wave · racket · bark · shower · press

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. last — final
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bark — to shout
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. last — finally
  9. press — a publisher
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. shower — rain
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. prune — to trim
  17. last — to go on
  18. prune — to trim
  19. press — to push
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. shower — to wash
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wound — an injury

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