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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: club · jam · chip · staff · rule · last · object · land

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. chip — for betting
  5. last — to go on
  6. land — a country
  7. staff — employees
  8. club — a group
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — government
  11. last — final
  12. rule — a law
  13. object — to protest
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. last — finally
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. chip — to eat
  18. object — a thing
  19. land — ground
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — a stick
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. object — an aim
  24. land — to come down

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