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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. bulb — for light
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. stock — goods
  8. press — to push
  9. net — in sport
  10. press — a publisher
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. roll — a list
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. snap — to click
  19. stock — shares
  20. press — newspapers
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — after costs
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. bulb — for light

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