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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. bark — to shout
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. chest — of your body
  12. prune — to trim
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. fork — in a road
  17. swing — music
  18. chest — a box
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. prune — to trim
  24. chest — of your body

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