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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: stem · lie · shower · fall · file · face · cell · snap

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. snap — to click
  9. face — to confront
  10. fall — to drop
  11. cell — in biology
  12. fall — to drop
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. file — a document
  16. face — to point toward
  17. cell — a phone
  18. shower — rain
  19. face — part of the head
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. file — a line of people
  23. shower — to wash
  24. file — a tool

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