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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: capital · cell · lie · bulb · rule · swing · hand · last

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. capital — money
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. bulb — for light
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. last — to go on
  8. rule — government
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. swing — in golf
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. rule — a law
  13. last — finally
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. last — final
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. capital — a city
  19. swing — music
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. hand — help
  22. cell — in biology
  23. lie — to recline
  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