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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.

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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: prune · present · bore · wave · lie · tube · bark · shower

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bore — to drill
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — rain
  7. tube — a container
  8. bark — to shout
  9. present — a gift
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. shower — to wash
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. present — there
  17. present — the time now
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. lie — to recline
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. tube — in a tire

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