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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: bark · present · bass · chest · bowl · track · rest · wound

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. present — a gift
  3. bass — the fish
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. wound — an injury
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. track — a song
  11. rest — a break
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. rest — what's left
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bark — to shout
  16. track — to keep track
  17. present — there
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. present — the time now
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bass — low music
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. wound — an injury

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