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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wind · clip · cabinet · chip · rest · hide

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. rest — what's left
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. wind — moving air
  12. clip — to cut
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. chip — to eat
  15. clip — a video
  16. rest — a break
  17. chip — for betting
  18. rest — what's left

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