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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: tear · march · dip · ruler · cap · stem

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. tear — from crying
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. tear — to rip
  6. cap — a hat
  7. march — music
  8. cap — a lid
  9. stem — to come from
  10. tear — from crying
  11. dip — to sink
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. cap — of ice
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. stem — a stem cell

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