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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: bank · fall · straw · face · lie · field · pop · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. object — a thing
  4. field — a subject
  5. pop — soda
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pop — music
  8. bank — of a river
  9. field — farmland
  10. bank — for money
  11. field — for sport
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bank — for money
  16. fall — the season
  17. lie — to recline
  18. fall — to drop
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pop — to visit
  23. fall — to drop
  24. object — an aim

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