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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: bowl · wake · cell · tear · lash · stand · branch · land

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wake — a trail
  5. cell — a phone
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. land — a country
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. land — to come down
  13. cell — in biology
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. land — ground
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. tear — to rip

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