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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 120 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: chest · calf · race · clip · bulb · bore · chip · last

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. race — the arms race
  3. bulb — for light
  4. clip — a video
  5. chest — of your body
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. last — to go on
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. last — final
  11. chest — a box
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. race — humankind
  15. last — finally
  16. race — a contest
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bore — to drill
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bore — to tire
  21. chip — for betting
  22. chest — of your body
  23. clip — for paper
  24. bulb — for light

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