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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 116 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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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: lash · board · root · swing · degree · cold · patient · row

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. row — a line
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. root — the cause
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. root — of a plant
  7. swing — to play on
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. cold — an illness
  14. degree — from a university
  15. root — of a word
  16. degree — temperature
  17. board — a committee
  18. board — to get on
  19. cold — not warm
  20. swing — music
  21. degree — an amount
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cold — the Cold War

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