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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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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 · mine · club · chip · charge · rest · pound · bank

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. charge — electricity
  3. chip — to eat
  4. rest — a break
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — to cut
  8. charge — in control
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — for dancing
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. clip — a video
  13. charge — a price
  14. rest — what's left
  15. club — a group
  16. bank — of a river
  17. mine — for digging
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bank — for money
  20. pound — a weight
  21. bank — for money
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. pound — for dogs

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