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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: toast · net · row · board · tear · wake · field · rush

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. field — farmland
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. field — for sport
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. board — a committee
  8. rush — hurry
  9. net — after costs
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. toast — bread
  13. wake — a trail
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. board — to get on
  16. field — a subject
  17. row — a line
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rush — to hurry

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