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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · ruler · scale · fall · bat · fan · row · wake

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. scale — size or range
  3. clip — a video
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. row — a line
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. fall — the season
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fall — to drop
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. bat — the animal
  19. clip — for paper
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. clip — to cut
  22. wake — a trail
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. ruler — for measuring

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