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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: lean · prune · fine · land · scale · stand · straw · wound

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. scale — size or range
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. fine — high quality
  5. stand — to bear
  6. lean — thin
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. lean — to bend
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. prune — to trim
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. land — ground
  17. fine — all right
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. land — a country
  22. land — to come down
  23. scale — in music
  24. fine — a penalty

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