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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 120 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: hide · tear · mug · swing · cell · fall

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a cup
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. swing — music
  7. fall — the season
  8. mug — a face
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. fall — to drop
  11. cell — in biology
  12. swing — in golf
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. swing — to play on
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  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