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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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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: last · rush · date · bark · ruler · stem · file · scale

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. file — a document
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. scale — size or range
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. date — the fruit
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. scale — in music
  13. bark — to shout
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. rush — hurry
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a tool
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stem — to come from
  24. scale — for weighing

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