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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: chest · lie · pass · branch · fork · capital · ground · lean

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. lean — to bend
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. chest — of your body
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. chest — a box
  12. ground — a position
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. lean — thin
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. branch — a division
  17. lie — to recline
  18. fork — in a road
  19. capital — a city
  20. pass — a permit
  21. capital — money
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. lean — to rest against

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