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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wax — to grow
  4. swing — to play on
  5. press — a publisher
  6. swing — in golf
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. net — after costs
  10. fall — to drop
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. vault — a safe
  13. net — in sport
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. press — to push
  17. net — for catching
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. press — newspapers
  20. spring — the season
  21. swing — music
  22. spring — of water
  23. wax — in the ear
  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