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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: cue · present · stem · race · march · rule

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. cue — a hint
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — government
  5. cue — a signal
  6. race — the arms race
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. race — humankind
  11. march — the month
  12. stem — to come from
  13. march — music
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. present — the time now
  16. race — a contest
  17. cue — for pool
  18. present — there

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