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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. swing — in golf
  3. press — to push
  4. bank — for money
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. lean — thin
  7. press — a publisher
  8. swing — to play on
  9. scale — in music
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. race — the arms race
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wax — to grow
  14. race — a contest
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bank — for money
  17. press — newspapers
  18. lean — to bend
  19. race — humankind
  20. swing — music
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. bank — of a river
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. scale — size or range

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