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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: hand · stem · straw · mate · foot · staff · cap · wake

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wake — a trail
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a hat
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. foot — a measure
  9. mate — to breed
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. staff — a stick
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hand — help
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. mate — a partner
  19. cap — a lid
  20. staff — employees
  21. stem — to come from
  22. hand — in cards
  23. mate — a friend
  24. wake — before a funeral

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