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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 120 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: tear · cue · rule · bark · saw · patient · chest · craft

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. chest — of your body
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. cue — a hint
  6. rule — a law
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. saw — the tool
  10. craft — a skill
  11. cue — for pool
  12. chest — of your body
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. tear — from crying
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. rule — government
  23. chest — a box
  24. cue — a signal

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