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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.

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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: tube · band · degree · mouse · file · racket · staff · wave

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — from a university
  4. tube — the underground
  5. band — a music group
  6. tube — a container
  7. staff — a stick
  8. file — a document
  9. staff — employees
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. degree — temperature
  14. band — a ring
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. staff — employees
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. file — a tool
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. file — a line of people
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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