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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: wound · scale · rush · mark · calf · cabinet · pop · content

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a trace
  3. pop — music
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. content — happy
  6. pop — to visit
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. pop — soda
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. mark — a grade
  16. content — the amount
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rush — hurry
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. scale — in 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