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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. tear — from crying
  3. press — to push
  4. scale — size or range
  5. swing — in golf
  6. root — of a plant
  7. swing — music
  8. root — the cause
  9. tear — from crying
  10. press — newspapers
  11. board — to get on
  12. root — of a word
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. press — a publisher
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. scale — in music
  17. tear — to rip
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. stem — to come from
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — to grow
  24. stem — a stem cell

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