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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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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: tear · scale · fork · wind · prune · face · cell · trunk

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. face — to confront
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — a phone
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. tear — from crying
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. face — to point toward
  14. prune — to trim
  15. tear — to rip
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. fork — in a road
  18. cell — in biology
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wind — moving air
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. face — part of the head
  23. wind — moving air
  24. scale — size or range

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