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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. clip — for paper
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. clip — a video
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rock — a stone
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chip — to eat
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rock — music
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. chip — for betting
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. mine — for digging

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