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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: bat · cabinet · tube · temple · hand · scale · coach · pound

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. hand — help
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. tube — the underground
  8. scale — in music
  9. hand — in cards
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bat — the animal
  15. scale — size or range
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. tube — a container
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. coach — a trainer

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