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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 124 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: board · field · clip · wound · lash · rock · cap · wave

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. board — to get on
  3. cap — a lid
  4. clip — to cut
  5. board — a committee
  6. field — a subject
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. field — for sport
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rock — a stone
  12. cap — a hat
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. clip — for paper
  15. cap — of ice
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. wound — an injury
  20. clip — a video
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. field — farmland
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rock — music

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