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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. firm — decided
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. firm — steady
  8. bat — the animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. date — the fruit
  14. chest — a box
  15. craft — a skill
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. craft — boats
  20. clip — for paper
  21. firm — a company
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. chest — of your body

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