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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: wake · fall · fork · wind · tear · wave · rule · bark

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  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. rule — a law
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. fall — the season
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rule — government
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wind — moving air
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — to shout
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. rule — to rule out
  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