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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 116 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: tear · wind · cap · fine · drill · cell

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. tear — to rip
  3. cap — a hat
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wind — moving air
  6. drill — the tool
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. drill — army training
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — high quality
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fine — all right
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. cap — of ice
  17. drill — a practice
  18. cell — a phone

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