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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: bark · squash · ruler · mark · cabinet · tear · degree · game

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bark — to shout
  5. mark — a grade
  6. game — a match
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. squash — the sport
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. tear — to rip
  17. game — wild animals
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. squash — to crush
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. mark — a trace
  24. mark — to pay attention

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