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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.

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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: sharp · scale · bound · cold · stock · trunk · bowl · nail

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cold — not warm
  8. stock — shares
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cold — an illness
  11. sharp — clever
  12. stock — goods
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bound — certain
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bound — tied together
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. bound — obliged

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