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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.

Make a worksheet

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 · cue · squash · bear · bowl · bass · cold · straw

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  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. squash — the sport
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bass — low music
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cold — not warm
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bass — the fish
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. squash — to crush
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cue — a signal
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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