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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 120 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: net · lash · wave · row · plane · clip · tube · kick

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. net — for catching
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. net — in sport
  5. tube — a container
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. row — to paddle
  8. clip — to cut
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. net — after costs
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. plane — a tool
  15. row — a line
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. clip — a video
  18. kick — in football
  19. tube — the underground
  20. clip — for paper
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. lash — an eyelash

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