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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 120 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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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: pound · bark · last · scale · track · wind · stem · suit

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. track — to keep track
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. last — finally
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. pound — a weight
  8. stem — to come from
  9. track — a song
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. last — final
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. track — a path
  16. suit — in cards
  17. wind — moving air
  18. suit — clothes
  19. suit — to fit
  20. last — to go on
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. scale — size or range
  23. bark — to shout
  24. wind — to turn a key

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