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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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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: craft · wax · mate · net · kick · pop · press · charge

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wax — to grow
  4. charge — electricity
  5. charge — a price
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. pop — soda
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. craft — a skill
  11. mate — a partner
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. charge — in control
  14. mate — to breed
  15. press — to push
  16. kick — in football
  17. press — a publisher
  18. craft — boats
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. press — newspapers
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. pop — music

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