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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 116 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: shower · perch · bark · ruler · prune · swing · bass · root

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. swing — in golf
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. root — of a plant
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bass — the fish
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. prune — to trim
  13. swing — to play on
  14. bass — low music
  15. perch — the fish
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. shower — rain
  19. prune — to trim
  20. root — the cause
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. root — of a word
  24. swing — music

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