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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: swing · craft · row · rule · tube · rest

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. swing — to play on
  3. craft — a skill
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. rule — a law
  7. row — to paddle
  8. tube — the underground
  9. row — a line
  10. rest — a break
  11. rule — government
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. rest — what's left
  14. swing — in golf
  15. tube — a container
  16. craft — boats
  17. rest — what's left
  18. swing — music

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