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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: stem · file · rash · mouse · clip · face · club · hand

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. hand — help
  4. file — a document
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. hand — in cards
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rash — a series
  11. face — to point toward
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. club — for dancing
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. clip — a video
  17. club — a group
  18. rash — hasty
  19. file — a line of people
  20. face — to confront
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — to come from
  24. file — a tool

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