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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: face · clip · wound · track · bass · kick · bat · chip

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. chip — to eat
  3. bass — low music
  4. face — to point toward
  5. face — part of the head
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. face — to confront
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. track — a path
  11. clip — a video
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. track — a song
  14. chip — for betting
  15. wound — an injury
  16. clip — to cut
  17. kick — in football
  18. bass — the fish
  19. clip — for paper
  20. track — to keep track
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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