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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
468
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: face · clip · club · file · scale · key · pitcher · chip

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. clip — a video
  3. face — to confront
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. key — the most important part
  6. face — to point toward
  7. clip — to cut
  8. file — a document
  9. scale — in music
  10. file — a line of people
  11. key — in music
  12. scale — size or range
  13. face — part of the head
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. club — for dancing
  16. clip — for paper
  17. chip — for betting
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. club — a group
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. key — for a lock
  23. file — a tool
  24. chip — to eat

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