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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 · scale · cabinet · tear · rash · saw · content · march

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. march — the month
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. swing — to play on
  6. tear — from crying
  7. scale — in music
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. march — the month
  10. content — happy
  11. rash — hasty
  12. swing — music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. saw — the tool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. tear — to rip
  19. march — music
  20. content — the amount
  21. swing — in golf
  22. rash — a series
  23. saw — the tool
  24. content — videos and posts

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