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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: clip · sharp · squash · court · cell · snap · chip · bass

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  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. sharp — clever
  2. court — for sport
  3. snap — to click
  4. chip — for betting
  5. court — of law
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. court — of a king
  9. clip — a video
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bass — the fish
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. chip — to eat
  14. squash — the sport
  15. bass — low music
  16. squash — to crush
  17. cell — in biology
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. cell — a phone
  23. clip — for paper
  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