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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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 · bear · scale · clip · fine · chest · trunk · spell

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. fine — high quality
  3. pound — a weight
  4. bear — the animal
  5. spell — letters
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fine — all right
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. spell — magic
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bear — the animal
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. scale — size or range
  17. clip — a video
  18. scale — in music
  19. spell — a short time
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. scale — for weighing

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