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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: wave · land · content · wind · rash · ruler · bulb · tear

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. land — a country
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bulb — for light
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rash — a series
  7. tear — to rip
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. content — happy
  10. land — to come down
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. land — ground
  14. wind — moving air
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. bulb — for light
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rash — on the skin

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