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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 · plane · leaves · track · scale · sharp · hand · kid

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. track — a song
  6. bark — to shout
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. scale — size or range
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. track — a path
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. scale — in music
  17. kid — child
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. hand — in cards
  20. track — to keep track
  21. sharp — clever
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. hand — help

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