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

Word bank: wound · cap · wave · foot · rule · bat · fall · staff

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. fall — to drop
  5. foot — a measure
  6. staff — employees
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cap — a hat
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cap — of ice
  14. staff — employees
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. fall — to drop
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. rule — government
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. staff — a stick
  22. fall — the season
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rule — a law

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