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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: chest · dip · fine · file · foot · snap · clip · cue

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. file — a document
  4. clip — to cut
  5. file — a tool
  6. fine — all right
  7. cue — a hint
  8. chest — of your body
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. cue — a signal
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. dip — to sink
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. cue — for pool
  17. chest — a box
  18. file — a line of people
  19. foot — a measure
  20. clip — a video
  21. chest — of your body
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. clip — for paper

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