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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 · shower · wound · leaves · bass · club · content · drill

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. shower — to wash
  4. content — the amount
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. scale — in music
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. content — happy
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. club — a group
  11. scale — size or range
  12. wound — an injury
  13. shower — rain
  14. bass — low music
  15. drill — army training
  16. club — for dancing
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bass — the fish
  20. club — for golf
  21. drill — a practice
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. wound — an injury
  24. content — videos and posts

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