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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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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 · ruler · row · snap · object · rash · spell · cold

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. wake — a trail
  4. row — a line
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — not warm
  8. spell — magic
  9. object — a thing
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. rash — a series
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. cold — an illness
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to click
  18. object — to protest
  19. spell — letters
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. object — an aim
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. spell — a short time

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