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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. press — newspapers
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. squash — the sport
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. file — a document
  10. roll — a cake
  11. squash — to crush
  12. file — a line of people
  13. press — to push
  14. roll — a list
  15. file — a tool
  16. wax — to grow
  17. toast — bread
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. hand — help
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. press — a publisher

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