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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 120 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: pitch · pound · tube · squash · last · snap · season · calf

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. tube — the underground
  3. pitch — completely
  4. last — finally
  5. season — in sport
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. snap — to click
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. pound — a weight
  18. season — of the year
  19. squash — the sport
  20. last — to go on
  21. tube — a container
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. pound — for dogs

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