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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: stand · rock · face · prune · lash · lean · race · clip

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. prune — to trim
  3. rock — music
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. race — humankind
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lean — to bend
  9. face — part of the head
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. clip — a video
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — for paper
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. lean — thin
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. face — to confront
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. face — to point toward

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