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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: plane · mine · perch · deal · temple · mug · pitcher · last

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. perch — the fish
  7. mug — a cup
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. last — finally
  10. deal — to handle
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. mug — a face
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. last — to go on
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. mine — an explosive

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