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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: ground · kid · chip · clip · charge · lean · straw · lie

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ground — a position
  3. lean — to bend
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. charge — a price
  6. kid — to tease
  7. chip — to eat
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. clip — a video
  10. ground — the earth
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. charge — in control
  14. kid — child
  15. clip — for paper
  16. lie — to recline
  17. charge — electricity
  18. chip — for betting
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. clip — to cut
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lean — thin
  24. chip — in a computer

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