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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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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: stem · cabinet · wind · cap · hand · rule · season · root

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — help
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — a law
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wind — moving air
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. season — in sport
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cap — a lid
  13. root — of a plant
  14. root — of a word
  15. cap — a hat
  16. root — the cause
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. season — of the year
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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