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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: row · tube · wake · march · roll · wave · rest · hand

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. hand — help
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. rest — what's left
  5. roll — a cake
  6. row — to paddle
  7. march — music
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. row — a line
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. hand — in cards
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. roll — a list
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. march — the month
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wake — a trail
  23. march — the month
  24. tube — a container

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