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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: prune · ground · content · cap · fall · face · tear · lie

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  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. lie — an untruth
  2. fall — to drop
  3. content — the amount
  4. ground — a position
  5. fall — the season
  6. face — part of the head
  7. prune — to trim
  8. content — happy
  9. face — to confront
  10. ground — the earth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cap — of ice
  14. fall — to drop
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ground — crushed
  17. tear — from crying
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. face — to point toward
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cap — a hat
  22. prune — to trim
  23. content — videos and posts
  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