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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: clip · wound · stand · press · lie · stem · lean · pound

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. wound — an injury
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. lean — to bend
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. press — to push
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — to recline
  11. press — newspapers
  12. lean — thin
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. clip — to cut
  17. stand — to bear
  18. wound — an injury
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. clip — a video
  23. press — a publisher
  24. stem — a stem cell

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