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

Word bank: fork · wind · suit · file · saw · rule

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. suit — to fit
  7. suit — in cards
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. suit — clothes
  11. file — a line of people
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. file — a tool
  14. wind — moving air
  15. file — a document
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — in a road
  18. wind — moving air

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