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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: row · racket · band · swing · spring · lash · bank · wax

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. 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. band — a music group
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. band — a ring
  6. bank — of a river
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. bank — for money
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. swing — music
  15. row — a line
  16. bank — for money
  17. wax — to grow
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. swing — to play on
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. row — to paddle
  24. 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