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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 · present · clip · last · racket · safe · wax · shower

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. clip — for paper
  3. present — a gift
  4. chip — to eat
  5. present — the time now
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. present — there
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. last — to go on
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. shower — rain
  14. clip — a video
  15. last — finally
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. clip — to cut
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. shower — to wash
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — for betting
  24. wax — to grow

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