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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: trunk · spell · shower · fork · tear · patient · charge · bark

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bark — to shout
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tear — from crying
  9. shower — rain
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. charge — in control
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. spell — magic
  14. charge — a price
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tear — to rip
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — a short time
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. fork — in a road
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. charge — electricity

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