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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 · staff · nail · wound · march · mine · squash · spell

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mine — for digging
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. squash — the sport
  11. wound — an injury
  12. squash — to crush
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. staff — employees
  15. march — music
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. scale — in music
  19. march — the month
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. march — the month
  22. scale — size or range
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — letters

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