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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. fork — in a road
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. tear — to rip
  7. saw — the tool
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bound — obliged
  13. hand — help
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bound — certain
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. hand — in cards
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. saw — the tool
  24. tear — from crying

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