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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: rule · last · rush · swing · bulb · tear · current · cell

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. last — to go on
  4. swing — to play on
  5. tear — to rip
  6. rush — hurry
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. swing — in golf
  10. current — electric
  11. tear — from crying
  12. current — happening now
  13. last — finally
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — a law
  17. current — of water
  18. last — final
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. swing — music
  24. rush — a thrill

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