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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 120 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: trunk · pop · ball · wind · band · wave · patient · scale

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  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. ball — a dance
  2. wind — moving air
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. band — a ring
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. pop — to visit
  7. scale — in music
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. band — a music group
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ball — a great time
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — soda
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  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