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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: shower · pit · pound · toast · wake · prune · snap · cap

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. toast — bread
  3. cap — of ice
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. cap — a lid
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. pound — a weight
  10. shower — rain
  11. pit — a hole
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. prune — to trim
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. pit — in a race
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. snap — to click
  20. cap — a hat
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. prune — to trim
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. shower — to wash

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