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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: ruler · firm · chest · scale · spell · bat · wound · net

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. net — for catching
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — of your body
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — in music
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. firm — decided
  11. spell — letters
  12. wound — an injury
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. net — in sport
  15. chest — a box
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bat — the animal
  18. net — after costs
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — magic
  21. firm — steady
  22. firm — a company
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. chest — of your body

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