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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: pass · clip · pitch · capital · trunk · wave · lash · band

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. capital — money
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. clip — a video
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. pass — a permit
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. clip — to cut
  12. band — a music group
  13. clip — for paper
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. capital — a city
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. band — a ring
  24. lash — to lash out

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