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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: tear · cell · stem · mark · hide · fan · date · row

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. row — to paddle
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. row — a line
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. tear — from crying
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. mark — a trace
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. date — the fruit
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cell — in biology
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. stem — to come from
  20. mark — a grade
  21. tear — to rip
  22. cell — a phone
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. fan — to cool the air

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