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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  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. snap — to speak sharply
  2. craft — boats
  3. content — the amount
  4. clip — to cut
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chip — for betting
  8. content — happy
  9. chip — to eat
  10. root — of a word
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. clip — for paper
  13. dip — to sink
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. root — of a plant
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. snap — to click
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. clip — a video
  22. craft — a skill
  23. root — the cause
  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