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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: mate · chip · last · band · fan · roll · saw · chair

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. mate — to breed
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. last — final
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. chip — for betting
  11. last — finally
  12. mate — a partner
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. saw — the tool
  15. last — to go on
  16. mate — a friend
  17. chip — to eat
  18. saw — the tool
  19. roll — a cake
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. band — a music group
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. roll — a list

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