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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: pop · bat · dip · chip · wound · charge · wind · lie

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. charge — electricity
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. charge — a price
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. pop — music
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wound — an injury
  13. lie — to recline
  14. charge — in control
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. pop — to visit
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. pop — soda
  19. chip — to eat
  20. wind — moving air
  21. chip — for betting
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wound — an injury

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