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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bear — the animal
  4. press — a publisher
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. perch — the fish
  7. game — wild animals
  8. wax — to grow
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. press — newspapers
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. season — in sport
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. game — a match
  16. press — to push
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. stem — to come from
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. season — of the year
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. bear — the animal

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