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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: content · chest · wave · field · scale · prune · pound · wax

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. field — for sport
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. content — the amount
  7. field — a subject
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. wax — to grow
  10. chest — a box
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. pound — a weight
  21. scale — in music
  22. content — happy
  23. field — farmland
  24. chest — of your body

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