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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: spell · file · scale · march · firm · track · trunk · face

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. firm — a company
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. face — part of the head
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — magic
  7. march — the month
  8. track — a song
  9. track — a path
  10. file — a tool
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. march — the month
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. file — a line of people
  15. face — to confront
  16. firm — decided
  17. spell — letters
  18. march — music
  19. track — to keep track
  20. firm — steady
  21. file — a document
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. face — to point toward

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