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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: scale · branch · bark · shower · pitch · track · bass · bound

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. shower — to wash
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. scale — size or range
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — low music
  9. pitch — completely
  10. branch — a division
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bound — obliged
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — rain
  18. scale — in music
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bound — certain
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bark — to shout
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. track — a path

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