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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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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: tear · board · wind · row · swing · bay · kick · file

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. swing — music
  3. row — to paddle
  4. file — a line of people
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. wind — moving air
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. board — to get on
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. board — a committee
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. tear — to rip
  14. file — a tool
  15. wind — moving air
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — a line
  18. tear — from crying
  19. swing — in golf
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. file — a document
  22. swing — to play on
  23. kick — in football
  24. tear — from crying

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