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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 120 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: bound · racket · cell · chip · track · rush · shower · band

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bound — certain
  3. band — a music group
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. track — a path
  7. track — to keep track
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. rush — hurry
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bound — tied together
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. cell — in biology
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. track — a song
  18. shower — rain
  19. band — a ring
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. chip — for betting
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. chip — to eat

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