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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wax · row · saw · toast · land · cell · board · chair

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. land — a country
  3. land — to come down
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. toast — bread
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. board — a committee
  11. land — ground
  12. board — to get on
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. row — to paddle
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cell — a phone
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. wax — to grow
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cell — in biology
  24. row — a line

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