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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: swing · wave · wax · content · cell · club

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cell — in biology
  3. swing — music
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wax — to grow
  9. swing — in golf
  10. content — happy
  11. club — for golf
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. club — a group
  15. cell — a phone
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. club — for dancing

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