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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: tear · fork · bat · ruler · object · date · rule · can

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. object — a thing
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. tear — from crying
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rule — government
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. rule — a law
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. fork — in a road
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. object — to protest
  16. bat — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. tear — to rip
  21. object — an aim
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. date — the fruit
  24. rule — to rule out

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