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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: mouse · bark · bass · march · mate · scale · ground · prune

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bass — low music
  6. ground — a position
  7. march — music
  8. bass — the fish
  9. march — the month
  10. bark — to shout
  11. ground — crushed
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. prune — to trim
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. mate — a partner
  19. march — the month
  20. mate — to breed
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. scale — in music

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