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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. field — for sport
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. firm — a company
  6. press — a publisher
  7. mate — a partner
  8. press — to push
  9. wax — to grow
  10. firm — steady
  11. mate — to breed
  12. cell — a phone
  13. field — a subject
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wound — an injury
  16. field — farmland
  17. firm — decided
  18. rock — music
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rock — a stone
  23. mate — a friend
  24. press — newspapers

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