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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 120 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 · ground · clip · bark · present · craft · row · club

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. clip — to cut
  4. ground — the earth
  5. present — a gift
  6. clip — a video
  7. ground — a position
  8. scale — in music
  9. club — a group
  10. present — the time now
  11. club — for golf
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. row — a line
  14. bark — to shout
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. present — there
  19. craft — a skill
  20. ground — crushed
  21. club — for dancing
  22. scale — size or range
  23. craft — boats
  24. craft — a handicraft

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