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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: chair · prune · object · scale · bear · pitcher · toast · chest

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. scale — size or range
  3. object — to protest
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. object — a thing
  6. chest — of your body
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. bear — the animal
  9. chest — a box
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bear — the animal
  16. toast — bread
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. object — an aim
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. scale — in music
  24. chest — of your body

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