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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · ruler · bark · field · content · present

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. present — a gift
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. present — there
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — happy
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. field — for sport
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bark — to shout
  14. field — a subject
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. present — the time now

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