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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 · stem · wave · charge · face · cell · race · tear

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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. charge — electricity
  4. fall — to drop
  5. race — the arms race
  6. face — to point toward
  7. charge — in control
  8. face — to confront
  9. charge — a price
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. cell — a phone
  12. race — humankind
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fall — the season
  15. face — part of the head
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. stem — to come from
  19. race — a contest
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cell — in biology
  24. fall — to drop

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