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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: march · scale · tube · net · rock · race · branch · bore

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. race — humankind
  4. race — a contest
  5. race — the arms race
  6. rock — a stone
  7. net — in sport
  8. scale — in music
  9. net — for catching
  10. rock — music
  11. branch — a division
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — to tire
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. tube — the underground
  17. march — the month
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. tube — a container
  20. net — after costs
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rock — to move gently

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