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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.

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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: spell · stick · prune · wind · file · ground · scale · bat

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. prune — to trim
  3. scale — in music
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bat — the animal
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ground — a position
  13. scale — size or range
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. file — a line of people
  17. ground — crushed
  18. spell — magic
  19. file — a tool
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. spell — letters
  23. ground — the earth
  24. spell — a short time

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