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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: cell · tear · chair · last · game · firm

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. firm — steady
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cell — in biology
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. tear — from crying
  11. firm — a company
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. last — to go on
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chair — a leader
  16. last — final
  17. last — finally
  18. firm — decided

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