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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. swing — in golf
  3. staff — a stick
  4. capital — a city
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. clip — a video
  7. capital — money
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. pop — soda
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chip — for betting
  12. clip — for paper
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. staff — employees
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bass — low music
  18. pop — music
  19. staff — employees
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bass — the fish
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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