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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · wind · chair · press · mouse · vault

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wax — to grow
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. press — a publisher
  9. press — to push
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. press — newspapers
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. wind — moving air
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. vault — a safe

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