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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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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 · cell · object · stand · deal · arm

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. object — an aim
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. cell — a phone
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. tear — to rip
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. object — to protest
  14. stand — to bear
  15. deal — to handle
  16. cell — in biology
  17. object — a thing
  18. cell — in a prison

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