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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. last — to go on
  3. bound — certain
  4. file — a document
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. tube — the underground
  11. charge — a price
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. charge — electricity
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. file — a tool
  18. charge — in control
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. fork — in a road
  23. file — a line of people
  24. tube — a container

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