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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: wax · staff · rest · club · squash · cell

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — a group
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. club — for golf
  7. staff — employees
  8. wax — to grow
  9. rest — a break
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cell — a phone
  12. squash — the sport
  13. staff — a stick
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cell — in biology
  17. staff — employees
  18. cell — in a prison

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