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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: lie · rule · wind · fan · bore · cold · dip · wake

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lie — to recline
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. rule — a law
  8. rule — government
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bore — to drill
  13. wind — moving air
  14. dip — to sink
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bore — to tire
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cold — an illness
  24. wake — a trail

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