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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: row · degree · band · root · coach · branch · lie · chest

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. root — of a word
  5. band — a music group
  6. root — the cause
  7. row — to paddle
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. degree — temperature
  10. lie — to recline
  11. band — a ring
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. degree — an amount
  14. chest — a box
  15. branch — a division
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — a line
  21. root — of a plant
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. degree — from a university

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