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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. cue — a signal
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. board — to get on
  10. kid — child
  11. kick — in football
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. fall — the season
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fall — to drop
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. cue — for pool
  20. fall — to drop
  21. board — a committee
  22. cue — a hint
  23. kid — to tease
  24. board — a flat piece

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