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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 120 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: spring · press · pit · wax · march · wind · pass · lash

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. march — the month
  4. pass — a permit
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. press — to push
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. march — the month
  12. pit — a hole
  13. wind — moving air
  14. march — music
  15. spring — the season
  16. wax — to grow
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. pit — in a race
  20. wind — moving air
  21. press — a publisher
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. press — newspapers

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