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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: nail · bat · trunk · ground · march · scale · leaves · track

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. march — music
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. ground — the earth
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. ground — a position
  13. scale — in music
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. ground — crushed
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. track — to keep track
  19. march — the month
  20. track — a path
  21. scale — size or range
  22. track — a song
  23. march — the month
  24. trunk — of a car

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