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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: chip · clip · hand · cue · pound · season · press · mug

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. press — to push
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. hand — help
  5. pound — a weight
  6. mug — to rob
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cue — a signal
  9. season — of the year
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. clip — for paper
  12. season — in sport
  13. cue — a hint
  14. chip — to eat
  15. mug — a face
  16. clip — a video
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. press — newspapers
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. hand — in cards
  23. clip — to cut
  24. press — a publisher

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