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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: hand · tear · face · cell · band · fine · kick · coach

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. band — a ring
  7. face — to confront
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hand — help
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. cell — a phone
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. kick — in football
  15. fine — all right
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. face — part of the head
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. band — a music group
  23. fine — high quality
  24. face — to point toward

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