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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: clip · craft · saw · chip · bound · file · leaves · mark

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. file — a tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. mark — a trace
  7. saw — the tool
  8. file — a document
  9. clip — to cut
  10. craft — a skill
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. file — a line of people
  13. chip — to eat
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chip — for betting
  16. clip — a video
  17. mark — a grade
  18. craft — boats
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bound — obliged
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bound — certain

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