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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: mouse · swing · wind · clip · shower · chip · scale · leaves

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. wind — moving air
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. clip — a video
  6. swing — in golf
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. wind — moving air
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. shower — rain
  15. scale — in music
  16. clip — for paper
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. chip — for betting
  19. scale — size or range
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — to play on
  23. clip — to cut
  24. shower — to wash

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