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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: trunk · scale · mate · board · row · game · spell · bear

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. spell — letters
  3. board — to get on
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — a match
  6. spell — a short time
  7. scale — size or range
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. mate — to breed
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. row — a line
  15. game — wild animals
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. scale — in music
  18. row — to paddle
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. mate — a partner
  21. spell — magic
  22. board — a committee
  23. mate — a friend
  24. bear — the animal

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