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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.

Make a worksheet

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: bay · present · cold · trunk · perch · wax · pitcher · last

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. last — to go on
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. cold — not warm
  5. wax — to grow
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. last — finally
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. last — final
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. present — there
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. present — a gift
  24. cold — an illness

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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