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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. ball — a dance
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. ball — a great time
  10. press — newspapers
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. saw — the tool
  13. hand — help
  14. press — a publisher
  15. shower — rain
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. saw — the tool
  20. hand — in cards
  21. snap — to click
  22. shower — to wash
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wax — for sculpting

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