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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. spring — a coil
  3. present — a gift
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. track — to keep track
  6. press — to push
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. present — there
  9. spring — the season
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. drill — a practice
  13. track — a path
  14. drill — army training
  15. track — a song
  16. spring — of water
  17. press — newspapers
  18. shower — rain
  19. present — the time now
  20. wax — to grow
  21. drill — the tool
  22. shower — to wash
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wax — for sculpting

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