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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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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 · snap · bat · rush · pass · cabinet · last · kid

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rush — hurry
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. snap — to click
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. last — final
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. pass — a permit
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bat — the animal
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. last — finally
  24. hide — to keep secret

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