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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 116 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: bark · ruler · branch · chip · tube · bass · land · wound

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. tube — a container
  3. land — to come down
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bass — the fish
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. chip — for betting
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. land — ground
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. tube — the underground
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. bass — low music
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. land — a country
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. branch — a division
  24. bark — to shout

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