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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. spring — of water
  3. press — newspapers
  4. press — to push
  5. wax — to grow
  6. ground — the earth
  7. spring — the season
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. mark — a trace
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. ground — crushed
  16. file — a document
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. file — a tool
  19. ground — a position
  20. file — a line of people
  21. spring — a coil
  22. press — a publisher
  23. mark — a grade
  24. ruler — for measuring

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