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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: clip · firm · jam · stand · track · kid · straw · pound

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. kid — to tease
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. clip — a video
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. kid — child
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. firm — steady
  11. track — to keep track
  12. stand — to bear
  13. firm — decided
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. track — a song
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. clip — to cut
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. firm — a company
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. clip — for paper
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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