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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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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: stem · wind · rash · lie · tear · stand · mine · bear

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. stem — to come from
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stand — to bear
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. tear — from crying
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bear — the animal
  14. mine — for digging
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. tear — to rip
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bear — the animal
  24. tear — from crying

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