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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 116 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: hide · press · snap · patient · kid · field · tube · wax

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. kid — child
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. kid — to tease
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. field — farmland
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. tube — the underground
  11. wax — to grow
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. tube — a container
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. field — a subject
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. field — for sport
  21. press — to push
  22. press — a publisher
  23. snap — to click
  24. hide — animal skin

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