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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. tear — from crying
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. press — to push
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. craft — a skill
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. tear — to rip
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. press — a publisher
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. press — newspapers
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. wax — to grow
  21. stem — to come from
  22. craft — boats
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — completely

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