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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: bore · cell · saw · tear · shower · fall · dip · lie

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bore — to tire
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. lie — to recline
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — the season
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bore — to drill
  14. shower — to wash
  15. tear — from crying
  16. saw — the tool
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. shower — rain
  19. saw — the tool
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cell — a phone

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