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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: racket · file · clip · fine · stock · court · bass · bound

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. court — of law
  3. bound — obliged
  4. file — a tool
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fine — all right
  7. bound — certain
  8. file — a line of people
  9. clip — a video
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. court — for sport
  12. fine — high quality
  13. stock — shares
  14. bass — the fish
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. stock — goods
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. file — a document
  19. bass — low music
  20. court — of a king
  21. bound — tied together
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — for paper

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