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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: trunk · row · race · suit · bass · kid · game · scale

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. scale — size or range
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. race — the arms race
  5. row — a line
  6. bass — low music
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. race — a contest
  10. suit — clothes
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. game — a match
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. suit — in cards
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. scale — in music
  19. bass — the fish
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. kid — to tease
  22. race — humankind
  23. suit — to fit
  24. scale — for weighing

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