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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: land · racket · suit · hand · chip · trunk · cap · clip

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — a hat
  4. suit — clothes
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. hand — help
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cap — of ice
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. suit — in cards
  17. chip — to eat
  18. clip — for paper
  19. land — ground
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. clip — to cut
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. clip — a video
  24. hand — in cards

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