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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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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 · bat · mark · race · straw · row · dip

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. race — humankind
  3. cue — a hint
  4. row — a line
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. cue — a signal
  7. mark — a trace
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. dip — to sink
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bat — the animal
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. cue — for pool
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. race — a contest
  24. mark — to pay attention

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