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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: pitch · clip · saw · wake · rock · band · chip · stem

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. chip — for betting
  3. band — a music group
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — completely
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chip — to eat
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — a stone
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. clip — a video
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. band — a ring
  18. clip — for paper
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. clip — to cut
  22. saw — the tool
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. wake — a trail

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