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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: cell · bowl · cold · track · press · rush · wax · row

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cold — not warm
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. track — a path
  10. rush — hurry
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. press — to push
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. cold — an illness
  17. press — a publisher
  18. track — a song
  19. wax — to grow
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — a line
  22. press — newspapers
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cold — the Cold War

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