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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. tear — from crying
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. file — a line of people
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a music group
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. rule — government
  12. tear — to rip
  13. file — a tool
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. tear — from crying
  20. file — a document
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. fork — in a road
  23. rule — a law
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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