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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 · arm · wave · bear · chest · stem · key · mug

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. key — for a lock
  5. stem — to come from
  6. cold — an illness
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. key — the most important part
  10. mug — to rob
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. bear — the animal
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. chest — a box
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. mug — a cup
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. mug — a face
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bear — the animal
  23. key — in music
  24. wave — of the sea

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