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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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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: mark · row · band · rule · tear · bark · scale · bass

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. row — a line
  6. bass — low music
  7. scale — in music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. scale — size or range
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. tear — to rip
  17. mark — a grade
  18. row — to paddle
  19. band — a music group
  20. rule — government
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bass — the fish
  23. mark — a trace
  24. rule — a law

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