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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 120 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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. kick — in football
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. press — newspapers
  6. mate — a friend
  7. spring — a coil
  8. swing — to play on
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. spring — the season
  11. mate — a partner
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. swing — in golf
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. press — to push
  20. swing — music
  21. press — a publisher
  22. snap — to click
  23. spring — of water
  24. mate — to breed

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