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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: chip · chest · band · lean · lash · tube · bark · patient

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. band — a ring
  3. bark — to shout
  4. chest — of your body
  5. band — a music group
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chest — a box
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. chip — to eat
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. lean — thin
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. tube — the underground
  21. chest — of your body
  22. tube — a container
  23. chip — for betting
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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