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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 120 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: field · chip · clip · bowl · dip · face · cold · mug

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. mug — a cup
  4. clip — a video
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. face — to confront
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — for paper
  10. field — a subject
  11. face — to point toward
  12. dip — to sink
  13. mug — a face
  14. field — for sport
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. field — farmland
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. chip — to eat
  21. mug — to rob
  22. face — part of the head
  23. chip — for betting
  24. dip — to dunk

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