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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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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: bear · clip · pop · bank · cap · cell · chest · chip

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. cell — in biology
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bank — of a river
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cap — a lid
  8. chest — a box
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. pop — to visit
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bank — for money
  13. pop — soda
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chip — for betting
  18. pop — music
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cap — a hat
  22. clip — a video
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bank — for money

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