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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. net — after costs
  4. wake — a trail
  5. cell — in biology
  6. clip — a video
  7. chip — for betting
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. net — for catching
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. cell — a phone
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. clip — to cut
  18. dip — to sink
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. net — in sport
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rash — a series
  24. chip — to eat

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