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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: kick · rock · rest · row · fan · drill · foot · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. rock — music
  3. drill — a practice
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. row — to paddle
  7. drill — army training
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. rest — what's left
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. rest — what's left
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. rest — a break
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. drill — the tool
  18. rock — a stone
  19. kick — in football
  20. foot — a measure
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. row — a line
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. foot — the bottom

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