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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 120 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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Word bank
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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 · craft · rash · chip · cell · cabinet · bound · lean

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. lean — thin
  5. tear — from crying
  6. craft — a skill
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. cell — in biology
  10. craft — boats
  11. tear — to rip
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. chip — for betting
  14. chip — to eat
  15. bound — certain
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. rash — hasty
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. lean — to bend
  24. rash — a series

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