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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 · ground · land · lie · spell · nail · foot · bat

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — a position
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bat — the animal
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. spell — letters
  13. scale — size or range
  14. lie — to recline
  15. land — to come down
  16. spell — magic
  17. foot — a measure
  18. ground — the earth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. scale — in music
  21. spell — a short time
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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