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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.

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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: wave · file · cell · march · content · wax · squash · present

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. content — the amount
  4. squash — to crush
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a line of people
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. present — a gift
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. content — happy
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. cell — a phone
  15. present — the time now
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. present — there
  18. file — a document
  19. march — music
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. march — the month
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. squash — the sport
  24. march — the month

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