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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 116 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: pit · clip · pitcher · kid · firm · wound · track · stem

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. track — a path
  3. clip — for paper
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. pit — in a race
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. track — a song
  9. firm — decided
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. firm — steady
  13. stem — to come from
  14. clip — a video
  15. track — to keep track
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. kid — to tease
  22. clip — to cut
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. firm — a company

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