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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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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. face — to confront
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cue — a signal
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. lie — to recline
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. face — part of the head
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cue — for pool
  24. leaves — to go away

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