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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · pitch · leaves · tube · row · clip · wound · bark

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. row — a line
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. wound — an injury
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. clip — a video
  17. tube — the underground
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. tube — a container
  23. bark — to shout
  24. scale — size or range

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