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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: hand · squash · last · jam · band · bank · mine · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. last — to go on
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. band — a ring
  11. bank — of a river
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bank — for money
  15. hand — in cards
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mine — for digging
  18. last — finally
  19. bank — for money
  20. last — final
  21. band — a music group
  22. squash — to crush
  23. hand — help
  24. chair — a leader

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