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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 · saw · snap · game · rest · lie · net · clip

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. rest — a break
  3. snap — to click
  4. game — a match
  5. clip — to cut
  6. net — in sport
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. net — for catching
  9. lie — to recline
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. saw — the tool
  12. rest — what's left
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. game — wild animals
  15. saw — the tool
  16. clip — for paper
  17. clip — a video
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. chip — to eat
  20. net — after costs
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. chip — for betting
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. rest — what's left

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