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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: current · tube · lash · swing · chair · chest · prune · squash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. current — of water
  3. prune — to trim
  4. chest — of your body
  5. swing — to play on
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chest — of your body
  10. swing — music
  11. squash — the sport
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. chest — a box
  18. current — happening now
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. current — electric
  23. tube — a container
  24. squash — the vegetable

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