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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. press — newspapers
  4. fine — all right
  5. press — a publisher
  6. march — the month
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. file — a line of people
  10. fine — high quality
  11. shower — rain
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. march — music
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. kick — in football
  16. branch — a division
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. file — a tool
  19. march — the month
  20. press — to push
  21. shower — to wash
  22. file — a document
  23. wax — to grow
  24. branch — of a bank

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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