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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: toast · game · pitcher · last · bat · fine · trunk · hide

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. toast — bread
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. last — to go on
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. fine — all right
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. last — final
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bat — the animal
  16. last — finally
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fine — high quality
  20. game — a match
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a kind of play

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