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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: fall · cabinet · cell · stick · mug · tear · press · root

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. 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. tear — from crying
  2. press — a publisher
  3. root — of a plant
  4. mug — a face
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cell — in biology
  9. fall — to drop
  10. press — to push
  11. fall — to drop
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. tear — to rip
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. fall — the season
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. root — the cause
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. root — of a word
  22. press — newspapers
  23. mug — to rob
  24. 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