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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: field · kid · scale · hand · can · rash · arm · trunk

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. can — a tin
  3. field — for sport
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. scale — size or range
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hand — in cards
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. scale — in music
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. rash — hasty
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — a subject
  19. rash — a series
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. arm — part of the body

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