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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. scale — size or range
  4. bark — to shout
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bear — the animal
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. drill — army training
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. press — a publisher
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. tear — to rip
  18. scale — in music
  19. bear — the animal
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — to push
  23. tear — from crying
  24. fork — in a road

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