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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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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. stock — shares
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chip — for betting
  6. charge — a price
  7. cell — a phone
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — to breed
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — to cut
  15. charge — electricity
  16. mate — a friend
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cell — in biology
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. charge — in control
  24. stock — goods

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