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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: bank · prune · trunk · fine · ground · race · scale · cold

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bank — of a river
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bank — for money
  9. scale — size or range
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — humankind
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. ground — a position
  14. race — a contest
  15. bank — for money
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. cold — not warm
  18. ground — crushed
  19. prune — to trim
  20. scale — in music
  21. fine — all right
  22. ground — the earth
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. fine — high quality

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