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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bark — to shout
  3. drill — army training
  4. cold — an illness
  5. wind — moving air
  6. object — a thing
  7. can — to be able to
  8. drill — the tool
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — a tin
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. rest — what's left
  17. object — to protest
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. rest — a break
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. object — an aim
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. wake — a trail

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