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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. fine — all right
  3. press — a publisher
  4. chest — a box
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. chest — of your body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. press — to push
  17. press — newspapers
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. sharp — clever
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — size or range
  24. fine — high quality

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