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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: tear · stock · pound · stand · cell · fall

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cell — a phone
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. fall — the season
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. cell — in biology
  7. stock — goods
  8. fall — to drop
  9. tear — to rip
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stock — shares
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. stand — to bear
  16. tear — from crying
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — a weight

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