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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wax — to grow
  3. capital — money
  4. race — humankind
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. capital — a city
  7. present — a gift
  8. squash — to crush
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. press — to push
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. present — there
  15. press — newspapers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — the arms race
  19. squash — the sport
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. present — the time now
  23. plane — a tool
  24. press — a publisher

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