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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 · staff · trunk · drill · hand · pound · fine · season

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. hand — in cards
  3. fine — high quality
  4. staff — a stick
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. scale — in music
  7. staff — employees
  8. season — of the year
  9. fine — all right
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. scale — size or range
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. staff — employees
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. drill — a practice
  17. hand — help
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pound — a weight
  22. season — in sport
  23. drill — the tool
  24. pound — for dogs

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