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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 · swing · wake · rash · cap · stem · degree · hide

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wake — a trail
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rash — hasty
  5. cap — of ice
  6. rule — a law
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. rash — a series
  9. degree — an amount
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. swing — music
  12. degree — temperature
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. cap — a lid
  20. rule — government
  21. cap — a hat
  22. swing — in golf
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. swing — to play on

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