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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 116 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. cue — for pool
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cue — a hint
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rash — hasty
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cold — an illness
  15. wake — a trail
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cap — a lid
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. rash — a series
  24. cold — the Cold War

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