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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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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: hand · press · squash · lean · wax · cap · saw · wake

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cap — of ice
  3. press — newspapers
  4. saw — the tool
  5. squash — the sport
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. press — to push
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. saw — the tool
  11. press — a publisher
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. hand — help
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. cap — a hat
  16. lean — thin
  17. cap — a lid
  18. lean — to bend
  19. hand — in cards
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. squash — to crush

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