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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 120 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: hide · march · shower · temple · swing · fork · wake · prune

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. swing — in golf
  3. swing — to play on
  4. march — music
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. shower — rain
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — in a road
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wake — a trail
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. swing — music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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