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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · band · track · lean · present · root · hand · lash

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. track — a path
  3. hand — help
  4. lean — to bend
  5. root — of a plant
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. present — the time now
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. track — a song
  11. band — a ring
  12. cold — an illness
  13. present — there
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. root — the cause
  16. lean — thin
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. root — of a word
  19. hand — in cards
  20. track — to keep track
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. band — a music group
  23. present — a gift
  24. cold — not warm

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