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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: chip · cue · rest · kick · tear · cold · hide · rush

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — an illness
  7. rush — hurry
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cue — for pool
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chip — to eat
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. chip — for betting
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. tear — from crying
  17. kick — in football
  18. cue — a hint
  19. rest — what's left
  20. tear — to rip
  21. rest — a break
  22. cue — a signal
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — a thrill

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