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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 · pop · nail · file · clip · racket · date · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. clip — to cut
  4. pop — soda
  5. staff — employees
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. file — a document
  8. pop — to visit
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. file — a line of people
  11. clip — a video
  12. staff — employees
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pop — music
  15. club — for golf
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. club — a group
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. file — a tool
  20. club — for dancing
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. date — the fruit
  24. clip — for paper

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