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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.

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: scale · plane · game · pass · straw · tube · spring · trunk

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. plane — a tool
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. game — a match
  10. spring — the season
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. tube — a container
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. spring — a coil
  17. tube — the underground
  18. scale — in music
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. scale — size or range
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pass — a permit

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