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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · pop · chip · clip · dip · lean · patient · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. pop — soda
  3. perch — the fish
  4. chip — for betting
  5. lean — to bend
  6. dip — to sink
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. chip — to eat
  9. mine — for digging
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. clip — for paper
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — music
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. mine — an explosive

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