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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: saw · tear · wave · kid · last · march · cell · lie

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. lie — to recline
  3. last — to go on
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. cell — a phone
  9. kid — child
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — in biology
  13. tear — to rip
  14. kid — to tease
  15. march — the month
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. tear — from crying
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. march — music
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. march — the month
  23. saw — the tool
  24. tear — from crying

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