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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: mine · bank · scale · squash · tear · fork · rule · hide

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. rule — a law
  3. tear — from crying
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — in music
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. fork — in a road
  16. squash — to crush
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. squash — the sport
  20. tear — to rip
  21. rule — government
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. bank — for money

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