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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. wax — to grow
  3. prune — to trim
  4. root — the cause
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. saw — the tool
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. stand — to bear
  12. prune — to trim
  13. content — the amount
  14. root — of a plant
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. root — of a word
  17. bear — the animal
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bear — the animal
  20. press — newspapers
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. content — happy
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. press — a publisher

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