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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 116 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  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. staff — a stick
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. press — newspapers
  8. press — a publisher
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — to cut
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. dip — to sink
  16. clip — for paper
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. staff — employees
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. press — to push
  22. wax — to grow
  23. staff — employees
  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