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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 116 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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. clip — to cut
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bulb — for light
  5. band — a ring
  6. band — a music group
  7. chip — for betting
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. game — wild animals
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — for paper
  14. game — a match
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. lean — thin
  19. chip — to eat
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. pound — a weight
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. dip — to sink

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