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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: prune · face · lie · kick · object · swing · spring · clip

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. face — to confront
  3. swing — music
  4. swing — in golf
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. clip — for paper
  7. spring — the season
  8. swing — to play on
  9. kick — in football
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — to protest
  12. prune — to trim
  13. face — part of the head
  14. lie — to recline
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. prune — to trim
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. face — to point toward
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — a coil
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. object — a thing

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