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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: lean · stand · cold · bark · bear · leaves · pass · lie

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lean — to bend
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. lie — to recline
  7. bear — the animal
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — to shout
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. stand — to bear
  18. bear — the animal
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. cold — an illness

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