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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: stem · toast · jam · clip · pound · chest · pitch · deal

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. toast — bread
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pitch — completely
  7. chest — a box
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pound — a weight
  21. deal — to handle
  22. stem — to come from
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. toast — the most admired

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