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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: scale · track · club · court · bark · spell · bore · bear

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. club — for dancing
  4. scale — in music
  5. court — of law
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. scale — size or range
  8. court — of a king
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bear — the animal
  11. club — for golf
  12. bark — to shout
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. track — to keep track
  15. spell — magic
  16. club — a group
  17. track — a song
  18. spell — a short time
  19. bear — the animal
  20. track — a path
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. spell — letters

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