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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: rash · mine · tear · plane · cell · deal · chest · straw

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rash — a series
  5. plane — a tool
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. cell — in biology
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. deal — to handle
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. mine — for digging
  21. chest — a box
  22. rash — hasty
  23. tear — from crying
  24. straw — dry grass

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