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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 116 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. press — a publisher
  4. cold — not warm
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. wax — to grow
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. press — newspapers
  9. branch — a division
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. net — in sport
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — for catching
  16. staff — employees
  17. cold — an illness
  18. press — to push
  19. staff — employees
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. staff — a stick
  24. trunk — of a tree

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