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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: clip · chip · mouse · date · spell · tube · pitch · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. spell — a short time
  4. clip — a video
  5. date — the fruit
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. tube — a container
  12. spell — magic
  13. chip — for betting
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. chip — to eat
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. tube — the underground
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. clip — to cut
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. spell — letters
  22. pitch — completely
  23. clip — for paper
  24. kid — to tease

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