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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.

Make a worksheet

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 · tear · can · wound · prune · coach · march · fall

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. march — the month
  4. can — a tin
  5. scale — size or range
  6. tear — to rip
  7. march — music
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fall — the season
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. can — a tin
  18. fall — to drop
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wound — an injury
  22. prune — to trim
  23. scale — in music
  24. march — the month

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