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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: charge · dip · mouse · wind · clip · saw · wake · branch

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. charge — electricity
  3. clip — for paper
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. charge — in control
  7. wake — a trail
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wind — moving air
  12. clip — a video
  13. charge — a price
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. branch — a division
  18. dip — to sink
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wind — moving air
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. mouse — the animal

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