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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. cold — not warm
  3. land — a country
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bound — certain
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bound — obliged
  8. press — newspapers
  9. land — to come down
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. press — to push
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. rock — a stone
  19. bound — tied together
  20. cold — an illness
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. land — ground
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rock — music

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