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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. press — to push
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — music
  7. wax — to grow
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. press — a publisher
  11. court — of law
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. court — of a king
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bulb — for light
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. plane — a tool
  21. court — for sport
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tear — from crying

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