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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 116 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: tear · shower · rule · stick · wind · lean · rest · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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 — before a funeral
  2. rest — a break
  3. rule — government
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. wake — a trail
  14. shower — rain
  15. rest — what's left
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. lean — thin
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. shower — to wash
  20. rule — a law
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lean — to bend
  23. tear — from crying
  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