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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: season · scale · sharp · field · clip · chip · mate · wave

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. chip — to eat
  4. scale — in music
  5. clip — a video
  6. chip — for betting
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. sharp — clever
  9. field — farmland
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. clip — for paper
  14. season — of the year
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. scale — size or range
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mate — a partner
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. field — for sport

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