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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: mug · pop · prune · swing · scale · wake · land · content

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. swing — in golf
  3. scale — in music
  4. land — ground
  5. pop — music
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. swing — to play on
  8. prune — to trim
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mug — to rob
  11. content — the amount
  12. mug — a face
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. land — to come down
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. mug — a cup
  19. swing — music
  20. content — happy
  21. pop — soda
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. pop — to visit
  24. land — a country

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