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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: stem · ground · sharp · jam · clip · nail · pitch · mine

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. stem — to come from
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. sharp — clever
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. pitch — completely
  16. clip — to cut
  17. ground — the earth
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. mine — for digging
  22. ground — crushed
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. ground — a position

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