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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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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: wind · band · press · wax · swing · cue · bark · root

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cue — a signal
  3. cue — for pool
  4. press — newspapers
  5. swing — music
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bark — to shout
  8. swing — to play on
  9. band — a music group
  10. root — of a word
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. swing — in golf
  16. press — to push
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. root — of a plant
  20. cue — a hint
  21. wind — moving air
  22. root — the cause
  23. press — a publisher
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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