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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. firm — decided
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. last — finally
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wind — moving air
  15. staff — employees
  16. firm — a company
  17. wind — moving air
  18. firm — steady
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. last — to go on
  23. chair — a leader
  24. trunk — of a tree

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