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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: pit · board · clip · chip · spring · kick · cap · court

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. cap — a lid
  4. spring — the season
  5. board — a committee
  6. pit — in a race
  7. clip — for paper
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. kick — in football
  11. chip — for betting
  12. board — to get on
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spring — of water
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. clip — to cut
  21. pit — a hole
  22. court — for sport
  23. chip — to eat
  24. clip — a video

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