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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.

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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 · season · pitch · mark · root · track · tube · stock

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. track — a path
  3. season — in sport
  4. stock — goods
  5. clip — a video
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. clip — for paper
  10. tube — the underground
  11. root — the cause
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. root — of a word
  15. stock — shares
  16. pitch — completely
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — of the year
  19. clip — to cut
  20. track — a song
  21. mark — a grade
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. root — of a plant
  24. track — to keep track

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