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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: cell · saw · tear · club · fall · hide · bat · rush

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. tear — to rip
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tear — from crying
  5. club — for dancing
  6. fall — to drop
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cell — in biology
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fall — the season
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. club — a group
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tear — from crying
  21. club — for golf
  22. saw — the tool
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rush — hurry

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