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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: club · hand · tube · mine · rock · land · file · root

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. rock — a stone
  3. file — a document
  4. land — a country
  5. land — ground
  6. tube — a container
  7. club — a group
  8. root — the cause
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. club — for golf
  14. root — of a plant
  15. tube — the underground
  16. root — of a word
  17. land — to come down
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. file — a line of people
  21. club — for dancing
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — music
  24. hand — part of the body

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