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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: rest · lean · cell · can · stick · chest · tear · last

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. tear — to rip
  3. cell — a phone
  4. lean — to bend
  5. last — finally
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. last — to go on
  8. lean — thin
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. can — to be able to
  12. rest — a break
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rest — what's left
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. can — a tin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. chest — a box
  21. cell — in biology
  22. can — a tin
  23. rest — what's left
  24. chest — of your body

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