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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.

Make a worksheet

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: march · row · rush · swing · lean · kid · file · date

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. swing — music
  3. march — music
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. lean — thin
  7. file — a document
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. swing — in golf
  12. lean — to bend
  13. march — the month
  14. date — the fruit
  15. file — a tool
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a line
  18. rush — hurry
  19. march — the month
  20. file — a line of people
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. kid — to tease
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. swing — to play on

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