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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chip · prune · bark · root · chest · rash · object · tube

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. object — to protest
  3. prune — to trim
  4. object — an aim
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. tube — a container
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. tube — the underground
  13. rash — a series
  14. object — a thing
  15. bark — to shout
  16. chest — of your body
  17. prune — to trim
  18. chip — for betting
  19. chest — a box
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chip — to eat
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — of a word
  24. chest — of your body

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