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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: pitcher · net · pound · swing · last · season · cue · roll

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. last — finally
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. cue — a hint
  5. net — in sport
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. swing — in golf
  10. swing — to play on
  11. season — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. swing — music
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. roll — a list
  16. last — to go on
  17. net — after costs
  18. roll — a cake
  19. season — of the year
  20. cue — a signal
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. cue — for pool
  23. last — final
  24. season — to add flavour

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