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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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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: mark · bark · ground · bank · arm · last · branch · scale

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. bank — for money
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. bank — of a river
  6. scale — size or range
  7. last — to go on
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bank — for money
  11. ground — a position
  12. last — finally
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mark — a trace
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. ground — the earth
  18. mark — a grade
  19. last — final
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. bark — to shout
  22. scale — in music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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