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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 116 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: chip · rule · swing · current · prune · file · court · coach

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. swing — to play on
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — of water
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. court — of a king
  7. file — a tool
  8. current — electric
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. file — a document
  14. court — for sport
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. swing — music
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rule — a law
  21. swing — in golf
  22. court — of law
  23. chip — to eat
  24. file — a line of people

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