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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: snap · lash · hand · root · tube · wound · chest · bound

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wound — an injury
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. root — of a plant
  7. hand — help
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bound — tied together
  12. snap — to click
  13. chest — of your body
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. root — the cause
  16. hand — in cards
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bound — certain
  21. tube — a container
  22. root — of a word
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. bound — obliged

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