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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 120 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: wave · hand · firm · safe · last · sharp · chair · land

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. chair — a leader
  3. hand — in cards
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. firm — steady
  7. land — ground
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. last — to go on
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. land — a country
  12. land — to come down
  13. sharp — clever
  14. last — finally
  15. firm — decided
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. hand — help
  20. last — final
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. firm — a company

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