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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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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 · bear · track · chip · bank · pit · cell · race

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. race — humankind
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bank — for money
  5. race — the arms race
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. track — a song
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. pit — in a race
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bank — of a river
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bank — for money
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. track — a path
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. bear — the animal
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — for betting
  24. race — a contest

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