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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: rock · shower · squash · fork · cell · scale · rest · saw

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rock — music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rest — a break
  9. shower — to wash
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rock — a stone
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. squash — the sport
  14. shower — rain
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. cell — a phone
  17. fork — in a road
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. saw — the tool
  21. scale — in music
  22. squash — to crush
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. squash — the vegetable

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