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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. rest — a break
  6. saw — the tool
  7. object — a thing
  8. rest — what's left
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. track — a song
  11. track — to keep track
  12. clip — for paper
  13. object — to protest
  14. object — an aim
  15. track — a path
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. tube — the underground
  19. chip — to eat
  20. rest — what's left
  21. clip — to cut
  22. tube — a container
  23. clip — a video
  24. chip — in a computer

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