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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: kid · last · court · rush · content · cue · foot · season

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. cue — for pool
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. rush — hurry
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. season — of the year
  9. last — finally
  10. kid — to tease
  11. court — of law
  12. kid — child
  13. cue — a hint
  14. court — for sport
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. content — the amount
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. season — in sport
  19. foot — a measure
  20. last — final
  21. court — of a king
  22. cue — a signal
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. content — happy

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