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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: deal · wave · last · cell · wound · saw · tear · rash

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rash — hasty
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. rash — a series
  8. wound — an injury
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. last — final
  15. saw — the tool
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cell — a phone
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. deal — to handle
  23. saw — the tool
  24. tear — to rip

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