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

Word bank: wave · cue · court · chest · ball · straw · pitch · pound

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a signal
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. chest — of your body
  10. court — for sport
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. chest — a box
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. court — of a king
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. court — of law
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. pitch — completely
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. ball — a great time
  22. ball — a dance
  23. cue — a hint
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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