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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: scale · saw · face · spell · straw · bat · stand · shower

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. shower — rain
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. face — to point toward
  6. spell — letters
  7. face — to confront
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. scale — in music
  10. spell — magic
  11. face — part of the head
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. saw — the tool
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bat — the animal
  20. stand — to bear
  21. scale — size or range
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. spell — a short time
  24. bat — in an idiom

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