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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 116 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: stock · straw · chip · clip · spell · band · key · kick

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. chip — to eat
  3. band — a music group
  4. clip — for paper
  5. key — in music
  6. key — for a lock
  7. spell — magic
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stock — goods
  10. clip — a video
  11. spell — letters
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. key — the most important part
  15. kick — in football
  16. clip — to cut
  17. spell — a short time
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. stock — shares
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. band — a ring
  24. kick — with a leg

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