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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: perch · rash · ruler · net · field · press · wound · wax

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. field — a subject
  3. rash — a series
  4. field — farmland
  5. net — after costs
  6. field — for sport
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. net — in sport
  10. perch — the fish
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. rash — hasty
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. press — newspapers
  22. net — for catching
  23. wound — an injury
  24. press — a publisher

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