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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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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: file · chest · tube · clip · wave · lash

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. file — a tool
  3. chest — a box
  4. file — a line of people
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. file — a document
  8. chest — of your body
  9. clip — for paper
  10. tube — a container
  11. chest — of your body
  12. clip — to cut
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. tube — the underground
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. clip — a video

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