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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: tear · shower · cap · last · mark · bark · bank · prune

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. cap — a hat
  3. last — to go on
  4. bark — to shout
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — rain
  7. tear — from crying
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bank — for money
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. mark — a grade
  17. cap — of ice
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bank — for money
  23. cap — a lid
  24. tear — to rip

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