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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bank — for money
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. charge — electricity
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bank — of a river
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. charge — a price
  12. stand — to bear
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bank — for money
  15. tear — from crying
  16. snap — to click
  17. cell — in biology
  18. charge — in control
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. cell — a phone
  24. bat — the animal

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