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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 116 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: cue · hide · last · bat · bay · spell · tear · snap

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cue — a signal
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. tear — from crying
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. spell — a short time
  8. snap — to click
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. last — to go on
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. last — final
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — letters
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. tear — to rip
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bat — the animal
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. cue — a hint
  24. last — finally

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