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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 124 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. ball — a great time
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. hand — help
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. press — a publisher
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. wax — to grow
  18. pit — in a race
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. press — newspapers
  21. press — to push
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pit — a hole
  24. patient — a sick person

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