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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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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: bay · wake · chip · coach · chest · clip · cabinet · scale

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. scale — size or range
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. clip — to cut
  11. chest — of your body
  12. scale — in music
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chip — to eat
  16. chip — for betting
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. chest — a box
  21. clip — a video
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wake — a trail
  24. chest — of your body

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