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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: bowl · club · fine · track · cabinet · wound · leaves · bat

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. fine — all right
  3. club — for golf
  4. track — a song
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. club — a group
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. track — a path
  15. fine — high quality
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. track — to keep track
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fine — a penalty

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