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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: trunk · clip · spell · fall · chip · row · hand · patient

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. spell — magic
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. spell — a short time
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a line
  8. fall — to drop
  9. clip — a video
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. clip — for paper
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. fall — to drop
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fall — the season
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — for betting
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — help
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. clip — to cut

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