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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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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: rule · tear · stem · roll · mouse · capital

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. capital — a city
  3. rule — government
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — money
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — a cake
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. rule — a law

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