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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: band · scale · squash · tube · pound · wax · patient · cell

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — a phone
  4. squash — the sport
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. scale — in music
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. tube — a container
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wax — to grow
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. squash — to crush
  20. pound — a weight
  21. scale — size or range
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tube — the underground

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