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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 116 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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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: chair · deal · firm · mark · saw · bark · last · dip

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. firm — steady
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. last — final
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. saw — the tool
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. dip — to sink
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. mark — a trace
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. chair — a leader
  16. firm — a company
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mark — a grade
  19. last — to go on
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. firm — decided
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. saw — the tool

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