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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. chip — to eat
  3. band — a music group
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. band — a ring
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. stock — goods
  10. bear — the animal
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. stock — shares
  14. field — farmland
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bear — the animal
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. field — for sport
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. clip — a video
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. chip — for betting
  24. field — a subject

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