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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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Word bank
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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: drill · board · wake · rest · shower · cold · file · lean

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. drill — a practice
  3. shower — rain
  4. file — a tool
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — thin
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. file — a document
  9. board — to get on
  10. rest — a break
  11. file — a line of people
  12. lean — to bend
  13. drill — the tool
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rest — what's left
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. rest — what's left
  19. drill — army training
  20. shower — to wash
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. board — a committee
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. cold — the Cold War

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