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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: spring · pop · straw · vault · wind · track · firm · clip

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. spring — a coil
  3. pop — to visit
  4. firm — a company
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — for paper
  10. track — a path
  11. firm — decided
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. wind — moving air
  14. spring — of water
  15. pop — music
  16. pop — soda
  17. wind — moving air
  18. track — a song
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — a video
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. spring — the season
  23. vault — a safe
  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