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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · fine · bulb · bat · wake · bay · cold · file

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. scale — in music
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — a trail
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. file — a line of people
  11. file — a document
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. scale — size or range
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. file — a tool
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bulb — for light

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