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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: track · tear · deal · net · press · mine · wax · bore

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  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. press — to push
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. tear — to rip
  4. net — after costs
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. deal — to handle
  9. track — to keep track
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. net — in sport
  16. wax — to grow
  17. press — newspapers
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. net — for catching
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. track — a path
  23. track — a song
  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