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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: rush · cell · march · last · fork · rule

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. fork — in a road
  3. march — the month
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. last — to go on
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. last — finally
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. cell — a phone
  13. last — final
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — a law
  18. march — the month

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