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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. wind — moving air
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bound — tied together
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. last — to go on
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bound — certain
  11. dip — to sink
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. last — final
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bound — obliged
  23. wake — a trail
  24. last — finally

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