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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: fan · foot · cold · pop · mug · key · cell · stem

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. key — for a lock
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. mug — to rob
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. cell — a phone
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pop — to visit
  14. mug — a face
  15. pop — music
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — in biology
  18. key — the most important part
  19. pop — soda
  20. foot — a measure
  21. mug — a cup
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. key — in music
  24. cold — an illness

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