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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: rule · wound · face · prune · fork · field · bore · lash

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. field — farmland
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — a law
  7. prune — to trim
  8. field — for sport
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. wound — an injury
  13. rule — government
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. face — part of the head
  17. bore — to drill
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. field — a subject
  20. face — to confront
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. face — to point toward
  24. wound — an injury

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