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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: press · craft · rash · cold · pit · wax · roll · can

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. craft — boats
  3. can — a tin
  4. pit — in a race
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. can — a tin
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. press — a publisher
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wax — to grow
  15. roll — a list
  16. rash — a series
  17. press — newspapers
  18. rash — hasty
  19. craft — a skill
  20. cold — an illness
  21. roll — a cake
  22. cold — not warm
  23. press — to push
  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