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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.

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 · chair · trunk · bear · game · mine · band · stem

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. scale — in music
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. scale — size or range
  7. stem — to come from
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. mine — for digging
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. bear — the animal
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. game — a match
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. game — wild animals
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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