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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: bowl · present · cue · prune · bay · deal · squash · pitch

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. present — a gift
  7. cue — a signal
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. squash — the sport
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. deal — to handle
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cue — for pool
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. present — there
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. present — the time now
  22. squash — to crush
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. pitch — a sports field

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