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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: rule · club · race · chip · chair · band · roll · bass

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. club — a group
  3. band — a music group
  4. rule — a law
  5. chip — to eat
  6. club — for golf
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bass — low music
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bass — the fish
  11. chip — for betting
  12. band — a ring
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. rule — government
  17. roll — a list
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. race — a contest
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. roll — a cake
  23. club — for dancing
  24. race — humankind

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