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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: bark · cell · straw · stand · rash · tear

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cell — in biology
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. rash — a series
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bark — to shout
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. rash — hasty
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. tear — to rip

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