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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 120 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. lean — thin
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — size or range
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. scale — in music
  7. drill — army training
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. bark — to shout
  14. drill — a practice
  15. fork — in a road
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. drill — the tool
  20. hand — help
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. fork — to eat with

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