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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: cell · fall · track · tear · cabinet · wave · hand · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. tear — to rip
  4. track — a path
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. fall — to drop
  10. track — to keep track
  11. fall — to drop
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cell — a phone
  17. hand — help
  18. perch — the fish
  19. fall — the season
  20. hand — in cards
  21. track — a song
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. cell — in biology

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