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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 120 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: scale · stand · pit · mine · lean · plane · spring · tear

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. pit — a hole
  6. lean — thin
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. scale — size or range
  11. plane — a tool
  12. spring — a coil
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. tear — to rip
  15. stand — to bear
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. mine — for digging
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pit — in a race
  20. tear — from crying
  21. spring — of water
  22. lean — to bend
  23. spring — the season
  24. scale — in music

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