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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: mate · stem · wake · stock · fork · rule · present · march

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. present — a gift
  3. stock — shares
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. present — the time now
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. present — there
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. stock — goods
  12. mate — a friend
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mate — a partner
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — a trail
  17. march — music
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. march — the month
  20. fork — in a road
  21. rule — a law
  22. march — the month
  23. mate — to breed
  24. stem — to come from

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