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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. press — a publisher
  3. bear — the animal
  4. file — a tool
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. press — newspapers
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bear — the animal
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. net — in sport
  12. file — a document
  13. press — to push
  14. net — for catching
  15. file — a line of people
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. dip — to sink
  23. net — after costs
  24. wind — moving air

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