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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. track — a path
  3. file — a tool
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. kick — in football
  7. rush — hurry
  8. club — for golf
  9. file — a line of people
  10. press — to push
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for dancing
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. clip — to cut
  15. press — newspapers
  16. track — to keep track
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. clip — a video
  21. bass — the fish
  22. press — a publisher
  23. track — a song
  24. rush — to hurry

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