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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. lean — thin
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. press — to push
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. ball — a great time
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. ball — a dance
  10. press — a publisher
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — magic
  14. spring — the season
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — boats
  18. spring — of water
  19. lean — to bend
  20. spring — a coil
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wax — to grow

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