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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. swing — in golf
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. clip — a video
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. swing — music
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. date — the fruit
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. season — in sport
  16. swing — to play on
  17. snap — to click
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. clip — for paper
  24. season — of the year

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