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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: pitcher · last · cue · straw · date · firm · game · tube

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cue — a signal
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. last — to go on
  10. firm — a company
  11. cue — a hint
  12. game — a match
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. tube — the underground
  16. cue — for pool
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. game — wild animals
  20. firm — decided
  21. firm — steady
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. tube — a container
  24. date — the fruit

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