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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: pitch · rash · rule · roll · bark · tear · bear · wound

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. tear — to rip
  6. bear — the animal
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. roll — a cake
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. rash — a series
  13. rule — a law
  14. bear — the animal
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. pitch — completely
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. roll — a list
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  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