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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: patient · cue · stem · mark · rule · cold

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. mark — a trace
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — to come from
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. rule — government
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cue — a signal
  15. mark — a grade
  16. rule — a law
  17. cue — for pool
  18. patient — a sick person

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