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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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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: lean · trunk · ball · lash · tear · mate · swing · clip

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mate — a partner
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. ball — a dance
  8. swing — in golf
  9. lean — to bend
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mate — to breed
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. clip — a video
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. swing — to play on
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. swing — music
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. mate — a friend
  21. tear — from crying
  22. clip — for paper
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lean — thin

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