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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 120 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: safe · scale · hide · chip · prune · chest · clip · fine

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. chip — for betting
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fine — all right
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. prune — to trim
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. clip — a video
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chip — to eat
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. clip — for paper
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. chest — a box
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — in music
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. fine — high quality
  23. clip — to cut
  24. scale — for weighing

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