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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: cell · rash · pop · last · root · bore · scale · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. scale — size or range
  3. last — final
  4. rash — a series
  5. bore — to tire
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pop — music
  8. root — the cause
  9. cell — a phone
  10. pop — soda
  11. last — to go on
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. scale — in music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. last — finally
  16. bore — to drill
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — hasty
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. root — of a word
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wax — for sculpting

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