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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: firm · vault · chest · tear · coach · lash · bass · clip

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bass — the fish
  3. tear — from crying
  4. clip — to cut
  5. firm — a company
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. chest — of your body
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. chest — a box
  11. bass — low music
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. vault — a safe
  14. firm — steady
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. clip — a video
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. chest — of your body
  24. firm — decided

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