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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: cap · patient · prune · shower · spell · bound · bore · net

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bound — obliged
  4. net — for catching
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. cap — a hat
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bore — to drill
  9. net — after costs
  10. bound — tied together
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. spell — letters
  13. cap — of ice
  14. prune — to trim
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. spell — magic
  17. net — in sport
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cap — a lid
  21. shower — rain
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to tire
  24. patient — a sick person

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