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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: cell · rash · stick · lie · clip · land · stand · tear

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. tear — from crying
  3. lie — to recline
  4. land — to come down
  5. clip — for paper
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. land — a country
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rash — a series
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. cell — in biology
  16. land — ground
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. tear — to rip
  21. rash — hasty
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. lie — an untruth

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