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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: bark · shower · ruler · bay · staff · date · field · tear

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. staff — employees
  3. field — for sport
  4. tear — from crying
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bark — to shout
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. date — the fruit
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — farmland
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. shower — rain
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. staff — employees
  21. tear — from crying
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. staff — a stick

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