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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: content · lean · wax · stand · face · land · mine · lie

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. wax — to grow
  4. land — a country
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. face — to confront
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. face — part of the head
  12. content — the amount
  13. stand — to bear
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. face — to point toward
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. lean — thin
  21. content — happy
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. wax — in the ear

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