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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. row — to paddle
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. roll — a cake
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. ground — crushed
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. ground — a position
  12. mine — for digging
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. row — a line
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. press — to push
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. dip — to sink
  24. press — newspapers

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