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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: staff · coach · mine · saw · fan · bass · board · last

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. staff — employees
  3. last — to go on
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bass — the fish
  8. board — to get on
  9. staff — a stick
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. saw — the tool
  12. last — final
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — low music
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. staff — employees
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. last — finally
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. saw — past of 'see'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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