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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: tear · bowl · chip · row · bass · scale · saw · stem

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bass — the fish
  7. scale — in music
  8. chip — for betting
  9. stem — to come from
  10. scale — size or range
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — a line
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. row — to paddle
  20. tear — to rip
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chip — to eat
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. bowl — to roll

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