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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wax — to grow
  3. charge — a price
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. saw — the tool
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. craft — a skill
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. land — ground
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. plane — a tool
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. press — newspapers
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. saw — the tool
  20. press — to push
  21. charge — in control
  22. pitch — completely
  23. press — a publisher
  24. charge — electricity

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