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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 120 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: clip · branch · race · pound · mate · pop · straw · spell

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. pop — music
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. mate — a friend
  8. race — the arms race
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. spell — a short time
  11. race — humankind
  12. pop — soda
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. clip — for paper
  15. spell — magic
  16. pop — to visit
  17. clip — to cut
  18. pound — a weight
  19. mate — to breed
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. mate — a partner
  22. spell — letters
  23. branch — a division
  24. race — a contest

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