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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 116 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: rush · band · rule · ruler · craft · saw · fork · cell

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rule — a law
  4. cell — a phone
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. craft — a skill
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — government
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. cell — in biology
  15. band — a music group
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. craft — boats
  20. rush — hurry
  21. fork — in a road
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. band — a ring

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