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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: rule · file · temple · arm · capital · fine · stem · drill

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. fine — all right
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. drill — army training
  6. rule — a law
  7. drill — a practice
  8. rule — government
  9. file — a tool
  10. capital — money
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. fine — high quality
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. file — a line of people
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. drill — the tool
  24. file — a document

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