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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. root — of a word
  3. kid — child
  4. prune — to trim
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — for pool
  7. prune — to trim
  8. press — a publisher
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. cell — in biology
  11. kid — to tease
  12. wax — to grow
  13. root — of a plant
  14. saw — the tool
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. root — the cause
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. press — newspapers
  20. saw — the tool
  21. cell — a phone
  22. press — to push
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. cue — a hint

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