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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: stock · clip · mine · kid · current · dip · chip · root

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stock — shares
  5. current — happening now
  6. kid — child
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. root — of a plant
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. current — electric
  12. chip — to eat
  13. root — of a word
  14. chip — for betting
  15. mine — for digging
  16. clip — for paper
  17. current — of water
  18. dip — to sink
  19. root — the cause
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. stock — goods
  24. mine — belonging to me

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