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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: wound · cell · file · track · tube · chest · fan · racket

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. track — a song
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chest — a box
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cell — a phone
  10. file — a line of people
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. chest — of your body
  14. tube — a container
  15. track — a path
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wound — an injury
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a tool
  22. tube — the underground
  23. cell — in biology
  24. track — to keep track

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