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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: spring · wound · rest · branch · can · scale · board · bark

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. scale — size or range
  3. spring — of water
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. can — to be able to
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. wound — an injury
  8. scale — in music
  9. board — a committee
  10. spring — a coil
  11. can — a tin
  12. branch — a division
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rest — a break
  16. bark — to shout
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. board — to get on
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. can — a tin
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. rest — what's left

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