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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: cue · race · deal · pitch · content · season · calf · hand

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. race — the arms race
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. season — of the year
  5. hand — in cards
  6. cue — a signal
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. hand — help
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. season — in sport
  11. race — humankind
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. deal — to handle
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. cue — for pool
  18. content — the amount
  19. cue — a hint
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. race — a contest
  22. pitch — completely
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. deal — an agreement

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