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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: last · clip · straw · chip · deal · perch · patient · hand

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. last — final
  3. chip — to eat
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. chip — for betting
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. clip — for paper
  9. last — finally
  10. hand — in cards
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. last — to go on
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — to cut
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. perch — the fish
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — help
  24. deal — to handle

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