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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: net · spell · chest · deal · tear · wax · wound · press

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  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. chest — of your body
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spell — magic
  4. press — to push
  5. chest — of your body
  6. tear — to rip
  7. chest — a box
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. wax — to grow
  10. net — after costs
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tear — from crying
  13. net — in sport
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wound — an injury
  18. net — for catching
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. tear — from crying
  21. spell — letters
  22. deal — to handle
  23. press — newspapers
  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