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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: scale · drill · swing · band · stock · cap · rest · bear

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. bear — the animal
  5. stock — shares
  6. drill — the tool
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rest — a break
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. drill — a practice
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. stock — goods
  13. band — a music group
  14. bear — the animal
  15. swing — in golf
  16. rest — what's left
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. scale — in music
  20. cap — a hat
  21. swing — music
  22. drill — army training
  23. swing — to play on
  24. scale — size or range

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