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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 116 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 · prune · sharp · dip · board · mine · band · chair

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. board — a committee
  5. chair — a leader
  6. board — to get on
  7. sharp — clever
  8. dip — to sink
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. band — a ring
  15. hand — in cards
  16. prune — to trim
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. band — a music group
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. hand — help

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