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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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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: hide · tear · cue · mouse · shower · stand · rush · bat

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. cue — a signal
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. shower — to wash
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bat — the animal
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. cue — a hint
  15. stand — to bear
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. rush — hurry
  19. shower — rain
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. tear — to rip
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. tear — from crying

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