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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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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: band · degree · lash · root · chip · prune · chest · chair

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. root — the cause
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chip — for betting
  6. degree — an amount
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chest — of your body
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — of a word
  13. degree — from a university
  14. prune — to trim
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. band — a ring
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. chip — to eat
  20. degree — temperature
  21. band — a music group
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. chest — a box
  24. band — a rubber band

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