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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: deal · club · land · wave · last · board · mine · chair

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. land — a country
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. club — for golf
  5. last — final
  6. mine — for digging
  7. deal — to handle
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. board — a committee
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. board — to get on
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. last — finally
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. last — to go on
  21. land — ground
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. club — for dancing
  24. land — to come down

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