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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: rule · cabinet · degree · stem · tube · court · arm · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. court — of law
  5. stem — to come from
  6. degree — from a university
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. wake — a trail
  9. rule — a law
  10. degree — an amount
  11. tube — a container
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. rule — government
  16. court — for sport
  17. degree — temperature
  18. tube — the underground
  19. court — of a king
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — a part of something

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