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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: sharp · season · clip · cabinet · saw · spell · mine · chip

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. saw — the tool
  3. clip — a video
  4. sharp — clever
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. season — of the year
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chip — to eat
  12. saw — the tool
  13. season — in sport
  14. spell — magic
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. chip — for betting
  24. spell — letters

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