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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 120 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: wake · tear · rash · wave · staff · temple · fall · bat

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. fall — the season
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. rash — a series
  7. fall — to drop
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. staff — a stick

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