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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 · club · pop · trunk · degree · current · stock · snap

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. degree — temperature
  4. snap — to click
  5. current — electric
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. pop — to visit
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pop — music
  12. stock — goods
  13. club — a group
  14. scale — in music
  15. stock — shares
  16. current — happening now
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. current — of water
  19. pop — soda
  20. club — for golf
  21. club — for dancing
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. degree — from a university
  24. scale — size or range

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