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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 · fork · spring · last · chip · rock · rash · bass

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. last — finally
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. clip — to cut
  5. fork — in a road
  6. chip — to eat
  7. rock — a stone
  8. spring — the season
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. last — final
  12. last — to go on
  13. rock — music
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. rash — a series
  17. spring — a coil
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. rash — hasty
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — low music
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. bass — the fish
  24. spring — of water

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