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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 · kid · rule · saw · cabinet · tear · can · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. saw — the tool
  3. can — a tin
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. can — to be able to
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. kid — child
  11. rule — a law
  12. tear — from crying
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. can — a tin
  16. capital — a city
  17. stem — to come from
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. tear — to rip
  20. saw — the tool
  21. rule — government
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — to tease

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