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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 116 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: pound · straw · march · bank · scale · kid

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. march — the month
  3. pound — a weight
  4. scale — in music
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. kid — child
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bank — for money
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music

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