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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: season · fine · coach · stem · wax · drill · press · racket

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. season — of the year
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. press — to push
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. stem — to come from
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fine — all right
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. fine — high quality
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. drill — the tool
  17. press — newspapers
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wax — to grow
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — in sport
  24. press — a publisher

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