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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: wax · fall · press · current · pit · cold · last · rest

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. rest — what's left
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a hole
  5. last — final
  6. press — newspapers
  7. current — of water
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. fall — the season
  12. current — electric
  13. current — happening now
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — to grow
  16. last — finally
  17. rest — a break
  18. press — to push
  19. last — to go on
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fall — to drop

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