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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: firm · scale · snap · saw · tear · cell · lie · hide

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cell — in biology
  4. saw — the tool
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. tear — to rip
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. firm — a company
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. tear — from crying
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cell — a phone
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. firm — decided
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. snap — to click
  23. lie — to recline
  24. firm — steady

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