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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. chest — of your body
  3. staff — employees
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. spell — a short time
  6. ground — crushed
  7. spell — letters
  8. ground — a position
  9. wax — to grow
  10. rest — what's left
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rest — what's left
  13. ground — the earth
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. press — newspapers
  17. rest — a break
  18. chest — a box
  19. staff — a stick
  20. spell — magic
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. press — a publisher
  24. staff — employees

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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