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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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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: pop · tear · stem · lean · swing · ball · face · wind

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  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. pop — soda
  2. lean — thin
  3. pop — to visit
  4. ball — a great time
  5. face — to point toward
  6. face — part of the head
  7. face — to confront
  8. swing — in golf
  9. wind — moving air
  10. tear — to rip
  11. stem — to come from
  12. lean — to bend
  13. swing — to play on
  14. wind — moving air
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. swing — music
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pop — music
  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