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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: pit · stock · clip · stem · kick · swing · tear · branch

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. clip — a video
  3. tear — to rip
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. clip — for paper
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pit — in a race
  9. stock — shares
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. swing — music
  12. clip — to cut
  13. stem — to come from
  14. swing — in golf
  15. tear — from crying
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. stock — goods
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. kick — in football
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pit — a hole
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a bank

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