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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 120 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: file · rule · bound · mate · club · mine · trunk · ball

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mine — for digging
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. club — a group
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. bound — obliged
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. club — for golf
  12. rule — government
  13. club — for dancing
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. bound — tied together
  16. ball — a great time
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rule — a law
  21. file — a line of people
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bound — certain
  24. mate — a friend

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