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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
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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 · cabinet · kid · prune · bark · row · spring · board

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. row — a line
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. prune — to trim
  9. spring — of water
  10. board — a committee
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spring — the season
  18. bark — to shout
  19. board — to get on
  20. scale — size or range
  21. row — to paddle
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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