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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: game · wake · tube · firm · rash · row · band · pitcher

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. firm — decided
  3. rash — a series
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. tube — a container
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. firm — steady
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. row — to paddle
  10. band — a music group
  11. row — a line
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. game — wild animals
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wake — a trail
  18. game — a match
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. band — a ring
  21. tube — the underground
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. firm — a company

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