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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: bay · bat · track · spell · hand · wound · firm · game

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. hand — help
  6. wound — an injury
  7. firm — decided
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. track — a song
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. track — a path
  12. spell — a short time
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. track — to keep track
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. firm — a company
  18. spell — magic
  19. spell — letters
  20. hand — in cards
  21. game — wild animals
  22. firm — steady
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. game — a match

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