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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: march · capital · stem · ruler · cell · hide · fine · prune

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. 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. capital — a city
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. march — the month
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. capital — money
  9. march — music
  10. stem — to come from
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. prune — to trim
  13. fine — high quality
  14. cell — a phone
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fine — all right
  22. march — the month
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. 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