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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: cold · pitcher · sharp · fine · pound · bowl · cue · season

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. season — of the year
  5. fine — all right
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cue — a hint
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cue — a signal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. fine — high quality
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. sharp — clever
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. season — in sport
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cue — for pool

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