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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wax — to grow
  3. press — a publisher
  4. squash — to crush
  5. press — newspapers
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. saw — the tool
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pass — a permit
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. track — to keep track
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. track — a song
  16. press — to push
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. saw — the tool
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. wind — moving air
  22. squash — the sport
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. track — a path

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