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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: land · current · bark · mark · prune · pass · fork · tear

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. mark — a trace
  5. fork — in a road
  6. land — to come down
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. current — happening now
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mark — a grade
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bark — to shout
  14. land — ground
  15. prune — to trim
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. tear — to rip
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — to trim
  23. current — of water
  24. land — a country

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