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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: chair · wax · press · racket · lean · stem

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — to grow
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — thin
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. press — newspapers
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a leader
  18. lean — to rest against

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