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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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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: plane · fall · wave · pit · drill · sharp · press · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. drill — the tool
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. drill — a practice
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. pit — a hole
  8. press — a publisher
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. pit — in a race
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. plane — a tool
  15. drill — army training
  16. sharp — clever
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wax — to grow
  19. fall — the season
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. press — newspapers
  23. press — to push
  24. wave — with your hand

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