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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: ruler · race · saw · fan · fork · date · bark · pound

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. date — the fruit
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. pound — a weight
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. saw — the tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — to shout
  12. saw — the tool
  13. race — humankind
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. race — a contest
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. race — the arms race
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. fork — a garden tool

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