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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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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: tube · bark · tear · trunk · patient · game · face · ruler

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. game — a match
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. face — to point toward
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. face — part of the head
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. tube — a container
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. game — wild animals
  21. face — to confront
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tear — from crying

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