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

Word bank: root · arm · can · clip · cell · chip · field · kick

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. can — to be able to
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. can — a tin
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. cell — in biology
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. chip — to eat
  10. root — the cause
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. field — farmland
  14. can — a tin
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. root — of a word
  17. chip — for betting
  18. cell — a phone
  19. kick — in football
  20. field — a subject
  21. root — of a plant
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. field — for sport
  24. chip — in a computer

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