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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: track · pop · row · file · mouse · bat · chip · hand

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hand — help
  3. track — a song
  4. row — to paddle
  5. row — a line
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. hand — in cards
  13. file — a document
  14. chip — for betting
  15. file — a line of people
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. pop — music
  20. file — a tool
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — the animal
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pop — soda

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