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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 120 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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. press — to push
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. saw — the tool
  10. snap — to click
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a hat
  14. press — a publisher
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. lie — to recline
  19. press — newspapers
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. season — of the year
  22. cap — a lid
  23. season — in sport
  24. saw — the tool

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