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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 120 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: arm · hand · bank · cell · capital · trunk · wave · scale

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bank — for money
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cell — a phone
  8. capital — a city
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. hand — help
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. capital — money
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. scale — in music
  24. hand — in cards

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