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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 116 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: band · craft · rash · content · trunk · prune · bat · scale

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. content — the amount
  3. craft — boats
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. band — a music group
  7. rash — a series
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. craft — a skill
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. prune — to trim
  14. band — a ring
  15. prune — to trim
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — in music
  18. rash — hasty
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. content — happy

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