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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: firm · pitcher · present · saw · trunk · last · game · bay

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. last — final
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. firm — steady
  8. last — to go on
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. present — a gift
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. saw — the tool
  14. last — finally
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. firm — a company
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. firm — decided
  22. game — wild animals
  23. present — the time now
  24. present — there

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