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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: last · rock · firm · craft · wind · bark · fall · pass

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. craft — boats
  4. last — to go on
  5. fall — the season
  6. last — finally
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. firm — a company
  10. fall — to drop
  11. rock — a stone
  12. last — final
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bark — to shout
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. firm — steady
  19. firm — decided
  20. rock — music
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pass — a permit

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