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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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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 · club · ruler · vault · race · cap · march · cold

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — a lid
  4. club — a group
  5. stem — to come from
  6. race — the arms race
  7. march — the month
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. club — for dancing
  11. cap — a hat
  12. club — for golf
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. cold — not warm
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — humankind
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — a safe
  22. march — the month
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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