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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: perch · craft · pass · cell · season · trunk · scale · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pass — a permit
  10. craft — boats
  11. scale — size or range
  12. cell — a phone
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. craft — a skill
  20. season — of the year
  21. cell — in biology
  22. season — in sport
  23. scale — in music
  24. cell — in a prison

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