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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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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: fall · game · tube · lie · lash · hide · prune · tear

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. game — a match
  4. fall — to drop
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tube — the underground
  15. game — wild animals
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. fall — the season
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. tube — a container
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. prune — to trim
  23. fall — to drop
  24. lash — an eyelash

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