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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
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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: wake · cell · charge · mine · can · chip · bark · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. charge — electricity
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. clip — a video
  7. chip — to eat
  8. bark — to shout
  9. charge — in control
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. chip — for betting
  12. can — a tin
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. clip — for paper
  17. mine — for digging
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. can — to be able to
  23. can — a tin
  24. charge — a price

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