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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: wound · leaves · wax · safe · press · sharp · row · stem

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. press — a publisher
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. row — a line
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. row — to paddle
  12. press — newspapers
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stem — to come from
  21. sharp — clever
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. press — to push
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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