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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: court · club · file · game · scale · prune · spell · bass

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. court — for sport
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. file — a line of people
  6. prune — to trim
  7. spell — letters
  8. scale — in music
  9. file — a document
  10. game — wild animals
  11. club — a group
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. court — of law
  15. game — a match
  16. spell — a short time
  17. court — of a king
  18. bass — low music
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. club — for golf
  21. spell — magic
  22. club — for dancing
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bass — the fish

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