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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: march · bear · capital · rule · foot · wake · stem · tube

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. march — the month
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — to come from
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. capital — a city
  10. bear — the animal
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. tube — the underground
  14. rule — a law
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. foot — a measure
  17. march — the month
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. tube — a container
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wake — a trail
  23. march — music
  24. rule — to rule out

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