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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: rest · fall · leaves · kid · press · sharp · deal · wax

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. rest — a break
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. kid — to tease
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. press — newspapers
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. rest — what's left
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. sharp — clever
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. deal — to handle
  13. press — to push
  14. rest — what's left
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. kid — child
  20. press — a publisher
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. fall — the season
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. wax — to grow

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