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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: wake · rock · field · date · snap · wind · fan · safe

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. rock — a stone
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. rock — music
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — a subject
  12. date — the fruit
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. field — for sport
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wind — moving air
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. snap — to click
  21. wake — a trail
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. fan — a supporter

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