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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: press · ball · pitcher · stand · present · wax · race · fan

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. race — a contest
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a great time
  8. press — to push
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. present — a gift
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. race — humankind
  15. press — a publisher
  16. present — there
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. stand — to bear
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. race — the arms race
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. present — the time now
  24. press — newspapers

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