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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: season · wave · pitcher · net · hand · last · key · cue

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. season — of the year
  3. key — for a lock
  4. hand — in cards
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. hand — help
  10. cue — a signal
  11. net — after costs
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cue — for pool
  15. net — in sport
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. key — in music
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. key — the most important part
  21. cue — a hint
  22. net — for catching
  23. season — in sport
  24. last — to go on

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