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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: tear · chair · clip · staff · cell · mouse · stand · wake

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. clip — to cut
  3. stand — to bear
  4. staff — a stick
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. tear — from crying
  9. clip — a video
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. staff — employees
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. wake — a trail
  15. chair — a leader
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. staff — employees
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cell — in biology
  23. tear — to rip
  24. chair — a professorship

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