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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: bore · clip · net · wake · club · squash · bass · chip

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. bass — the fish
  3. chip — for betting
  4. net — after costs
  5. wake — a trail
  6. chip — to eat
  7. bore — to tire
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bass — low music
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. net — for catching
  13. clip — for paper
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the sport
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. club — for golf
  19. net — in sport
  20. club — a group
  21. bore — to drill
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. clip — a video
  24. clip — to cut

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