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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.

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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: scale · stock · bank · tube · cue · craft · ground · degree

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  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. bank — of a river
  2. degree — from a university
  3. scale — in music
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. ground — a position
  6. cue — a signal
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. degree — temperature
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. cue — a hint
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — boats
  14. bank — for money
  15. stock — goods
  16. tube — the underground
  17. bank — for money
  18. ground — the earth
  19. degree — an amount
  20. cue — for pool
  21. stock — shares
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. ground — crushed
  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