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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: patient · object · cold · ruler · bark · wind · jam · prune

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. object — to protest
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. object — an aim
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bark — to shout
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. object — a thing
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. cold — not warm
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. prune — to trim

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