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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 120 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: cold · plane · chip · swing · mate · bass · wave · clip

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. plane — a tool
  4. chip — for betting
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. cold — an illness
  9. mate — to breed
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — to cut
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. mate — a partner
  14. swing — music
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. clip — for paper
  17. swing — to play on
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. swing — in golf
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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