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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: wax · jam · object · cell · suit · band · last · stem

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. suit — in cards
  3. last — to go on
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. object — to protest
  7. cell — in biology
  8. band — a music group
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. band — a ring
  14. wax — to grow
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. last — final
  17. suit — clothes
  18. suit — to fit
  19. stem — to come from
  20. object — a thing
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. last — finally

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