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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 · pass · pitcher · press · game · branch · season · last

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — a match
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. press — a publisher
  8. game — wild animals
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. last — final
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. press — newspapers
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. last — finally
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. pass — a permit
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. wax — to grow
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. press — to push
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. branch — a division
  24. last — to go on

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