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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · march · stand · scale · cell · chair

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. march — music
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. wax — to grow
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. cell — a phone
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. scale — in music
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. march — the month
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. scale — size or range
  14. chair — a leader
  15. march — the month
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. cell — in biology

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