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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: rock · snap · tear · wave · fall · pit · temple · fan

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pit — a hole
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. snap — to click
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. tear — from crying
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. rock — a stone
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. rock — music
  19. tear — from crying
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. fall — the season
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. pit — in a race

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