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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fine — high quality
  4. press — a publisher
  5. drill — a practice
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wax — to grow
  10. press — newspapers
  11. drill — army training
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. drill — the tool
  14. fine — all right
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. tear — from crying
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. press — to push
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bark — to shout
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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