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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 · field · rule · fan · trunk · game · safe

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. field — a subject
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. clip — a video
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. clip — to cut
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. field — farmland
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. field — for sport
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. clip — for paper
  20. chip — to eat
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. rule — a law
  23. rule — government
  24. fan — to cool the air

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