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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: game · prune · march · rash · mate · fan · bore · rule

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. rash — hasty
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. bore — to drill
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rule — a law
  9. march — the month
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. march — the month
  12. prune — to trim
  13. march — music
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bore — to tire
  16. mate — a partner
  17. game — a match
  18. mate — a friend
  19. rule — government
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. game — wild animals
  24. prune — the fruit

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