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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 · cell · bowl · march · rule · capital

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. march — music
  6. swing — in golf
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. capital — a city
  9. rule — government
  10. cell — a phone
  11. swing — to play on
  12. rule — a law
  13. cell — in biology
  14. capital — money
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bowl — to roll
  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