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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: tube · rush · clip · chip · dip · chair · bound · scale

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bound — obliged
  4. chair — a leader
  5. tube — a container
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bound — certain
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bound — tied together
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. chip — for betting
  14. tube — the underground
  15. clip — for paper
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rush — hurry
  18. scale — size or range
  19. chip — to eat
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. clip — a video
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. dip — to sink

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