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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: tube · bark · drill · bass · season · nail · scale · field

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. field — for sport
  4. drill — a practice
  5. scale — in music
  6. season — in sport
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. tube — the underground
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. season — of the year
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. tube — a container
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — size or range
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bass — low music
  22. drill — army training
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — a subject

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