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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: cold · foot · patient · bass · pitcher · cue · kid · arm

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. kid — to tease
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. cue — a hint
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. foot — a measure
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — child
  23. cue — a signal
  24. cue — for pool

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