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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: bay · cabinet · foot · wake · tear · wind · rock · rest

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. tear — from crying
  3. foot — a measure
  4. tear — to rip
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. rock — music
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rock — a stone
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. wind — moving air
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. rest — what's left
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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