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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 · pitcher · row · trunk · bay · march · cell · patient

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. scale — size or range
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. march — music
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. scale — in music
  8. cell — a phone
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. row — a line
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. march — the month
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. cell — in biology
  22. row — to paddle
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pitcher — a jug

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