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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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Word bank
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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: fan · chair · leaves · cell · row · craft · lash · tear

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. cell — in biology
  5. row — a line
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. tear — from crying
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. craft — a skill
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. tear — to rip
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. craft — boats
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. chair — a leader
  20. cell — a phone
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. row — to paddle
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — a quarrel

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