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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: face · stock · fall · tube · lean · wind · pit · mate

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. pit — in a race
  3. mate — to breed
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mate — a partner
  7. lean — to bend
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. mate — a friend
  11. stock — shares
  12. tube — the underground
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pit — a hole
  18. fall — to drop
  19. stock — goods
  20. face — part of the head
  21. tube — a container
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. wind — moving air

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