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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 116 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. fine — all right
  3. game — a match
  4. rock — a stone
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. press — a publisher
  7. press — to push
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. last — finally
  12. season — of the year
  13. last — final
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. press — newspapers
  19. rock — music
  20. season — in sport
  21. rash — a series
  22. game — wild animals
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. rash — hasty

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