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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: bat · sharp · scale · chip · march · stand · shower · roll

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. scale — size or range
  5. shower — rain
  6. chip — for betting
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. bat — the animal
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chip — to eat
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. sharp — clever
  14. roll — a cake
  15. march — music
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. stand — to bear
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. scale — in music
  22. march — the month
  23. roll — a list
  24. march — the month

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