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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 · track · squash · kick · pound · chip · stand · wake

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. clip — a video
  3. track — a path
  4. track — a song
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wake — a trail
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. stand — to bear
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. squash — to crush
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. chip — to eat
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. chip — for betting
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. track — to keep track
  19. squash — the sport
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. clip — for paper
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. clip — to cut
  24. squash — the vegetable

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