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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: cell · bound · bass · branch · drill · scale · net · bark

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. bound — certain
  3. bass — the fish
  4. net — in sport
  5. branch — a division
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. drill — army training
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. scale — in music
  14. net — for catching
  15. cell — in biology
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bass — low music
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — the tool

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