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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: wind · tube · mate · wake · object · snap · fall · face

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wind — moving air
  3. face — to confront
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. object — to protest
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. snap — to click
  8. mate — a partner
  9. fall — to drop
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fall — to drop
  12. tube — a container
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. mate — to breed
  15. wind — moving air
  16. object — an aim
  17. wake — a trail
  18. face — part of the head
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. fall — the season
  22. face — to point toward
  23. object — a thing
  24. mate — a friend

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