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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 116 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: pound · trunk · cue · sharp · scale · nail · file · clip

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. cue — for pool
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. file — a document
  9. pound — a weight
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. scale — size or range
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. cue — a signal
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. file — a line of people
  17. sharp — clever
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cue — a hint
  20. clip — a video
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. clip — for paper
  23. file — a tool
  24. nail — for a hammer

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