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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: mouse · rock · bass · game · sharp · bay · file · bat

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. bass — the fish
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — the animal
  8. game — a match
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bass — low music
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rock — music
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. sharp — clever
  19. file — a tool
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. rock — a stone
  24. file — a document

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