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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. last — final
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. last — to go on
  6. squash — the sport
  7. press — to push
  8. wax — to grow
  9. roll — a list
  10. press — newspapers
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. press — a publisher
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. chest — a box
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. last — finally
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stem — to come from
  22. mark — a grade
  23. roll — a cake
  24. squash — to crush

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