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

Word bank: content · press · board · wax · stem · band · stick · pound

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. press — to push
  8. board — to get on
  9. press — a publisher
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. band — a ring
  13. wax — to grow
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. board — a committee
  17. content — happy
  18. content — the amount
  19. band — a music group
  20. press — newspapers
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. pound — a weight
  24. stem — to come from

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