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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: scale · chair · prune · roll · tube · season · snap · net

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. net — in sport
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. prune — to trim
  6. roll — a list
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. scale — in music
  11. net — for catching
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. scale — size or range
  14. roll — a cake
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. tube — a container
  18. net — after costs
  19. snap — to click
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. chair — a leader
  22. prune — to trim
  23. tube — the underground
  24. chair — to sit on

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