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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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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: saw · fall · cell · prune · rush · bound · stand · tear

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — certain
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — the season
  7. cell — in biology
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bound — tied together
  13. rush — hurry
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — to bear
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. tear — from crying
  21. saw — the tool
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. fall — to drop

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