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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bear · hand · pitcher · stem · foot · cold · mouse · toast

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. hand — in cards
  7. stem — to come from
  8. cold — not warm
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bear — the animal
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. cold — an illness
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. bear — the animal
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. bear — to put up with

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