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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: swing · bore · rush · chip · prune · lie · cell · march

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. march — the month
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chip — to eat
  5. swing — music
  6. lie — to recline
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. cell — a phone
  10. rush — hurry
  11. swing — to play on
  12. prune — to trim
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. prune — to trim
  17. swing — in golf
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. cell — in biology
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. bore — to drill
  24. chip — for betting

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