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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: bass · mine · rash · foot · present · rule · file · cell

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. file — a tool
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bass — the fish
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rule — government
  11. rash — hasty
  12. present — the time now
  13. rash — a series
  14. rule — a law
  15. present — a gift
  16. file — a line of people
  17. present — there
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. cell — a phone
  20. file — a document
  21. foot — a measure
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. mine — belonging to me

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