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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 116 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: game · cell · clip · pound · wave · chair

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. game — a match
  6. cell — in biology
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. clip — for paper
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. chair — a leader
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. game — wild animals
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. cell — a phone

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