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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: stand · race · lie · land · spring · chest · stock · swing

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. swing — music
  3. spring — the season
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. spring — a coil
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. swing — to play on
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stock — shares
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — the arms race
  13. chest — of your body
  14. spring — of water
  15. land — a country
  16. race — humankind
  17. land — ground
  18. chest — of your body
  19. lie — to recline
  20. chest — a box
  21. swing — in golf
  22. land — to come down
  23. stock — goods
  24. stand — for spectators

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