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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: temple · last · root · stock · prune · shower · chest · perch

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. perch — the fish
  5. root — the cause
  6. last — to go on
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. prune — to trim
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. last — finally
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chest — a box
  14. chest — of your body
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — of a plant
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. chest — of your body
  22. last — final
  23. stock — goods
  24. shower — rain

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