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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: bark · rest · chair · safe · spring · mine · ruler · court

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. spring — of water
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. mine — for digging
  5. court — for sport
  6. bark — to shout
  7. chair — a leader
  8. rest — what's left
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. spring — the season
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. rest — a break
  17. spring — a coil
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. court — of a king
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. court — of law
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. chair — a professorship

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