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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 116 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: hand · current · tube · chip · bear · clip · kick · band

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. band — a ring
  7. clip — a video
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. current — of water
  10. chip — for betting
  11. kick — in football
  12. current — electric
  13. current — happening now
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. clip — to cut
  16. hand — help
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. tube — a container
  19. chip — to eat
  20. bear — the animal
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bear — the animal
  24. kick — a thrill

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