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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 120 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: firm · wake · wave · fall · kick · cell · bowl · bark

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. firm — steady
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bark — to shout
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. fall — the season
  9. firm — a company
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. cell — in biology
  19. firm — decided
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wake — a trail
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. cell — a phone
  24. wave — of the sea

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