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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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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: game · bass · chip · leaves · capital · scale · club · bark

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bark — to shout
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. club — a group
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. scale — size or range
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. bass — low music
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. capital — money
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. chip — to eat
  20. club — for dancing
  21. club — for golf
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. game — a match

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