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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. row — a line
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rest — a break
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. chip — to eat
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. chip — for betting
  15. rest — what's left
  16. dip — to sink
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cell — in biology
  22. row — to paddle
  23. spring — the season
  24. rest — what's left

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