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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: pop · kid · prune · shower · scale · temple · bear · straw

  1. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. shower — to wash
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bear — the animal
  7. kid — child
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. pop — to visit
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. pop — soda
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. shower — rain
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — in music
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. pop — music
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bear — the animal
  23. kid — to tease
  24. scale — size or range

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