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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 · staff · tear · firm · march · cell

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. march — the month
  3. staff — employees
  4. cell — a phone
  5. firm — decided
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. tear — to rip
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. tear — from crying
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. march — the month
  12. staff — employees
  13. firm — steady
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. staff — a stick
  16. firm — a company
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — music

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