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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: saw · drill · net · bark · pit · rock · scale · tear

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. scale — size or range
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. scale — in music
  5. net — in sport
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rock — music
  9. drill — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. pit — a hole
  12. drill — a practice
  13. saw — the tool
  14. drill — army training
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — for catching
  17. tear — to rip
  18. saw — the tool
  19. pit — in a race
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — to shout
  24. net — after costs

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