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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: staff · last · plane · hand · game · prune · bound · bay

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bound — tied together
  3. prune — to trim
  4. staff — employees
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. prune — to trim
  10. plane — a tool
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. bound — obliged
  13. last — final
  14. staff — employees
  15. game — a match
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bound — certain
  19. game — wild animals
  20. staff — a stick
  21. hand — in cards
  22. last — finally
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. hand — help

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