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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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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: last · pit · snap · fan · stand · fall · wax · kid

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. fall — to drop
  3. kid — to tease
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. last — final
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. last — finally
  13. fall — the season
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. snap — to click
  16. stand — to bear
  17. last — to go on
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pit — in a race
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. fall — to drop
  23. kid — child
  24. pit — a hole

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