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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.

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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. file — a document
  5. kid — child
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bank — of a river
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. land — a country
  10. file — a line of people
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. mate — a partner
  13. file — a tool
  14. kid — to tease
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. mate — to breed
  20. land — to come down
  21. mate — a friend
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — for money

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