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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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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: land · tear · bank · race · bear · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. cell — a phone
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. race — the arms race
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. race — humankind
  8. land — ground
  9. bank — for money
  10. race — a contest
  11. bank — for money
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. bank — of a river
  17. cell — in biology
  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