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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — from crying
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. cell — in biology
  7. staff — employees
  8. cell — a phone
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. press — a publisher
  11. wax — to grow
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. tear — from crying
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. charge — in control
  16. march — music
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. press — newspapers
  19. staff — employees
  20. tear — to rip
  21. march — the month
  22. staff — a stick
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. press — to push

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