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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: tube · swing · ground · rash · pitch · lash · roll · clip

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. ground — a position
  3. swing — music
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. rash — hasty
  8. tube — a container
  9. rash — a series
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. clip — for paper
  12. roll — a list
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. swing — in golf
  15. ground — crushed
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. pitch — completely
  18. ground — the earth
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. tube — the underground
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a cake

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