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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: row · craft · last · tear · lean · wind · object · content

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. content — the amount
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — to protest
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lean — thin
  10. craft — boats
  11. tear — from crying
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. last — to go on
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. row — a line
  16. wind — moving air
  17. row — to paddle
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. content — happy
  20. object — an aim
  21. last — final
  22. tear — to rip
  23. craft — a skill
  24. lean — to bend

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