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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 · cap · bay · wake · rest · degree · file · craft

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. file — a tool
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — a break
  9. rest — what's left
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. degree — from a university
  14. last — finally
  15. cap — a lid
  16. craft — a skill
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. degree — temperature
  20. craft — boats
  21. file — a document
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cap — a hat
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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