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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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468
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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. chip — for betting
  5. cell — a phone
  6. clip — for paper
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. clip — to cut
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. cell — in biology
  18. chip — to eat
  19. clip — a video
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. rest — what's left
  23. field — farmland
  24. rest — a break

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