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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: dip · bear · fork · cell · rule · stick · rash · saw

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. rash — hasty
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. dip — to sink
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. rule — a law
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. rule — government
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. rash — a series
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bear — the animal
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fork — in a road

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