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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: last · stick · cue · pitch · wax · kid · land · spring

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. last — to go on
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. spring — the season
  6. last — finally
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. land — to come down
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. last — final
  12. cue — for pool
  13. land — a country
  14. cue — a signal
  15. spring — a coil
  16. kid — to tease
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. land — ground
  21. wax — to grow
  22. cue — a hint
  23. kid — child
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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