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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 116 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
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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: object · shower · file · bark · scale · rest · land · straw

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. land — to come down
  3. object — an aim
  4. file — a line of people
  5. object — a thing
  6. file — a tool
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. land — ground
  11. rest — what's left
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. rest — a break
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. land — a country
  18. bark — to shout
  19. rest — what's left
  20. scale — size or range
  21. object — to protest
  22. file — a document
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. scale — in music

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