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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: craft · rule · bark · net · fork · rest

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. rule — a law
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. craft — a skill
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rule — government
  9. fork — in a road
  10. rest — what's left
  11. craft — boats
  12. net — in sport
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. bark — to shout
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching

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