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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: stem · hide · cold · chest · ground · ruler

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. ground — a position
  3. stem — to come from
  4. chest — a box
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ground — the earth
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. cold — not warm
  16. chest — of your body
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. ruler — a monarch

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