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

Word bank: straw · tear · cabinet · lie · chair · wave

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tear — to rip
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. lie — to recline
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. chair — a leader
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. tear — from crying

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