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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 120 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: pitcher · staff · bay · wax · cell · foot · cold · stand

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. cold — an illness
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. staff — a stick
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. foot — a measure
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. stand — to bear
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. cell — in biology
  22. staff — employees
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cold — not warm

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