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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: rest · last · trunk · arm · fall · wind · wax · pass

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. fall — to drop
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. fall — to drop
  5. wind — moving air
  6. last — final
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. last — to go on
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. fall — the season
  17. rest — what's left
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. rest — what's left
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. last — finally
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. rest — a break

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