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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: perch · wax · face · press · capital · last · snap · fine

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. capital — money
  3. face — part of the head
  4. press — newspapers
  5. press — to push
  6. press — a publisher
  7. last — finally
  8. last — final
  9. face — to point toward
  10. wax — to grow
  11. fine — all right
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. fine — high quality
  20. face — to confront
  21. capital — a city
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. snap — to click

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