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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: lie · chest · press · degree · wax · root · patient · plane

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. chest — of your body
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. press — a publisher
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chest — a box
  9. degree — an amount
  10. press — to push
  11. lie — to recline
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. degree — temperature
  14. root — of a plant
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wax — to grow
  18. degree — from a university
  19. root — of a word
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. press — newspapers
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. root — the cause
  24. plane — a tool

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