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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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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: chair · cold · board · charge · land · cue · root · toast

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. board — to get on
  3. land — ground
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. land — a country
  9. cue — a hint
  10. root — the cause
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. chair — a leader
  14. charge — in control
  15. cue — a signal
  16. charge — a price
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. land — to come down
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cold — not warm
  21. root — of a word
  22. charge — electricity
  23. toast — bread
  24. root — of a plant

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