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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. wax — to grow
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. deal — to handle
  6. mate — a partner
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. mine — for digging
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — in biology
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. press — newspapers
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. cell — a phone
  23. press — to push
  24. mate — to breed

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