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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a hint
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — completely
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. wake — a trail
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. season — in sport
  14. cue — a signal
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. season — of the year
  18. rush — hurry
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mine — for digging
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. season — to add flavour

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