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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: cell · club · wake · bark · bass · lash · file · hand

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. club — for dancing
  4. hand — in cards
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. file — a tool
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. cell — in biology
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. file — a line of people
  11. cell — a phone
  12. club — a group
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. hand — help
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bass — low music
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. club — for golf

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