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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: tube · coach · chip · clip · cell · craft · stock · land

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. land — a country
  3. clip — for paper
  4. land — ground
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chip — to eat
  7. tube — the underground
  8. land — to come down
  9. craft — boats
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. cell — a phone
  14. clip — a video
  15. tube — a container
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chip — for betting
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — a skill
  22. cell — in biology
  23. stock — shares
  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