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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: content · bat · trunk · arm · bank · net · degree · scale

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bank — of a river
  3. degree — an amount
  4. bank — for money
  5. degree — temperature
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. net — after costs
  9. scale — size or range
  10. content — the amount
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. net — for catching
  17. content — happy
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. degree — from a university
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. net — in sport
  24. scale — in music

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