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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: arm · cap · bound · shower · pound · prune · tear · rash

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pound — a weight
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. prune — to trim
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. rash — a series
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. tear — from crying
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. cap — a hat
  13. prune — to trim
  14. cap — a lid
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. tear — to rip
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bound — tied together
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bound — obliged
  23. bound — certain
  24. rash — hasty

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