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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 120 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. chip — to eat
  3. can — to be able to
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. chip — for betting
  9. clip — a video
  10. pit — in a race
  11. clip — for paper
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. can — a tin
  14. bat — the animal
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pit — a hole
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. file — a document
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. can — a tin
  22. file — a tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bat — for baseball

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