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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: wind · trunk · fall · rule · fine · last · bark · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. wind — moving air
  6. fall — to drop
  7. saw — the tool
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bark — to shout
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — government
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wind — moving air
  14. last — finally
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. last — to go on
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. last — final
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. fine — all right
  22. fall — the season
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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