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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: hide · trunk · clip · swing · file · band · board · dip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — music
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. file — a line of people
  9. band — a music group
  10. band — a ring
  11. board — to get on
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. file — a document
  14. clip — for paper
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. board — a committee
  20. swing — in golf
  21. file — a tool
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. clip — a video
  24. band — a rubber band

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