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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 · bark · wave · rule · ball · field · bound · season

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. season — of the year
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. ball — a great time
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — farmland
  9. rule — government
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rule — a law
  14. scale — in music
  15. field — for sport
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. bound — obliged
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bound — tied together
  21. season — in sport
  22. scale — size or range
  23. ball — a dance
  24. bound — certain

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