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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: lash · tear · clip · swing · board · chest

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. clip — to cut
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — a video
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — a committee
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. tear — from crying
  12. chest — of your body
  13. swing — to play on
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. chest — a box
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. board — to get on
  18. swing — in golf

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