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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. wax — to grow
  6. chest — a box
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. content — the amount
  10. craft — a skill
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. press — a publisher
  13. perch — the fish
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. content — happy
  20. chest — of your body
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. craft — boats
  24. chest — of your body

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