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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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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: scale · tear · file · swing · march · chest

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. swing — to play on
  3. tear — to rip
  4. swing — in golf
  5. march — the month
  6. chest — of your body
  7. file — a document
  8. swing — music
  9. march — music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. march — the month
  12. tear — from crying
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chest — a box
  17. file — a line of people
  18. chest — of your body

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