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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: rush · bound · hide · bass · cue · mine · snap · cold

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cold — an illness
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bass — the fish
  11. cue — a signal
  12. bound — tied together
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. bass — low music
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mine — for digging
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cue — a hint
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. snap — to click

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