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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: hand · trunk · bank · wind · prune · saw · clip · lash

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. clip — a video
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. prune — to trim
  9. clip — to cut
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bank — for money
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. saw — the tool
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. wind — moving air
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. hand — help
  23. clip — for paper
  24. prune — to trim

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