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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: temple · lean · cue · mark · last · pitch · net · season

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. season — of the year
  4. last — finally
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pitch — completely
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — a grade
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cue — for pool
  11. last — to go on
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — in sport
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. lean — thin
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. last — final
  21. net — after costs
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. cue — a hint

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