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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bass · file · club · racket · tube · net · cold · wound

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cold — an illness
  4. file — a tool
  5. bass — the fish
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. net — for catching
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. file — a document
  11. tube — the underground
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. net — after costs
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. net — in sport
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — for dancing
  18. bass — low music
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. tube — a container
  22. wound — an injury
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. club — a group

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