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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.

Make a worksheet

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: wave · wax · mine · drill · scale · stock · rest · pound

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. rest — a break
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. scale — size or range
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stock — shares
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. drill — a practice
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. rest — what's left
  18. stock — goods
  19. pound — a weight
  20. drill — army training
  21. drill — the tool
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. scale — in music
  24. pound — to hit hard

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