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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  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. saw — the tool
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. wound — an injury
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. hand — in cards
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. saw — the tool
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bat — the animal
  17. hand — help
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rock — music
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rock — a stone
  23. ruler — for measuring
  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