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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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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 · tear · pitcher · hand · cell · shower · face · race

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. race — the arms race
  3. shower — rain
  4. race — a contest
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. shower — to wash
  9. tear — from crying
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — a phone
  13. face — to confront
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. hand — help
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. hand — in cards
  20. race — humankind
  21. face — to point toward
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. face — part of the head

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