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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: face · squash · fall · land · lean · bear · plane · tear

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. lean — thin
  3. bear — the animal
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fall — to drop
  6. squash — the sport
  7. land — ground
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. lean — to bend
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. squash — to crush
  13. fall — the season
  14. face — to confront
  15. land — a country
  16. bear — the animal
  17. tear — to rip
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. face — to point toward
  20. tear — from crying
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. plane — a tool
  23. face — part of the head
  24. land — to come down

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