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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: saw · mine · fan · rule · sharp · bark · lean · racket

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. mine — for digging
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. saw — the tool
  9. rule — government
  10. bark — to shout
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. lean — to bend
  17. sharp — clever
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rule — a law
  24. fan — a supporter

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