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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 120 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. drill — the tool
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — army training
  5. bound — tied together
  6. wind — moving air
  7. rest — a break
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fall — to drop
  10. drill — a practice
  11. prune — to trim
  12. object — an aim
  13. wind — moving air
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fall — the season
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fall — to drop
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — to protest
  23. bound — certain
  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