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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 120 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
468
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 · tube · nail · land · squash · prune · wake · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. prune — to trim
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. land — a country
  9. prune — to trim
  10. squash — the sport
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. squash — to crush
  14. wake — a trail
  15. land — to come down
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wax — to grow
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. land — ground
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — a container
  24. prune — the fruit

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