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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
Word bank
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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. cell — a phone
  3. mark — a grade
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. mark — a trace
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. clip — for paper
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. clip — a video
  12. prune — to trim
  13. last — finally
  14. chip — to eat
  15. last — final
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. clip — to cut
  21. cell — in biology
  22. last — to go on
  23. fork — in a road
  24. prune — to trim

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