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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: rash · press · fork · foot · scale · branch · wax · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. press — a publisher
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. rash — hasty
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. season — in sport
  10. scale — size or range
  11. fork — in a road
  12. branch — a division
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. season — of the year
  17. press — to push
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. scale — in music
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. foot — a measure
  22. press — newspapers
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — for sculpting

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