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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — all right
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stand — to bear
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. chair — a leader
  12. press — to push
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. last — to go on
  16. press — newspapers
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. last — final
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. wax — to grow
  23. press — a publisher
  24. last — finally

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