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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 120 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 · calf · snap · tube · chair · racket · scale · content

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — in music
  4. tube — the underground
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. tube — a container
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. chair — a leader
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. snap — to click
  23. content — the amount
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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