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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: arm · board · land · band · spell · fine · trunk · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. fine — high quality
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — magic
  6. land — a country
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spell — a short time
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. last — to go on
  12. band — a music group
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. last — final
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. band — a ring
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. board — to get on
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. board — a committee
  21. land — to come down
  22. fine — all right
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. land — ground

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