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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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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: row · hand · date · rule · swing · pit · march · stem

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. hand — in cards
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. stem — to come from
  6. swing — in golf
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. row — to paddle
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. rule — a law
  12. hand — help
  13. march — music
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. rule — government
  16. march — the month
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. row — a line
  21. march — the month
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stem — of a plant

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