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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: tear · deal · bat · cell · ruler · chair

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. tear — from crying
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chair — a leader
  8. tear — to rip
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. cell — a phone
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bat — for baseball

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