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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. degree — from a university
  4. press — a publisher
  5. press — to push
  6. fork — in a road
  7. rush — hurry
  8. press — newspapers
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. stand — to bear
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. degree — temperature
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. spell — magic
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. degree — an amount
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. spell — letters
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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