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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: arm · rule · squash · chest · tube · swing · row · rush

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. rule — government
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. squash — the sport
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. tube — the underground
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. squash — to crush
  10. swing — to play on
  11. tube — a container
  12. swing — in golf
  13. row — a line
  14. chest — of your body
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. chest — a box
  17. swing — music
  18. row — to paddle
  19. rule — a law
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rush — hurry

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