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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: rest · wind · cap · bark · staff · rash · safe · mate

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  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. rest — what's left
  2. staff — employees
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. staff — employees
  7. mate — to breed
  8. cap — a hat
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. cap — a lid
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. rest — a break
  14. rash — hasty
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rest — what's left
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cap — of ice
  22. staff — a stick
  23. rash — a series
  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