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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 · mine · cap · craft · land · squash · perch · stem

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. stem — to come from
  3. craft — a skill
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. squash — the sport
  6. land — to come down
  7. squash — to crush
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. rule — a law
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. cap — of ice
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. mine — for digging
  14. craft — boats
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. cap — a lid
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. rule — government
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. cap — a hat
  24. mine — an explosive

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