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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: ruler · march · roll · swing · rush · present · cold · key

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — not warm
  3. roll — a list
  4. march — the month
  5. key — the most important part
  6. roll — a cake
  7. present — a gift
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. present — the time now
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. swing — music
  16. present — there
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. swing — to play on
  20. key — for a lock
  21. key — in music
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. swing — in golf

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