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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: march · swing · pound · cell · rock · bore · press · prune

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. swing — music
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. march — the month
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cell — a phone
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bore — to tire
  10. cell — in biology
  11. swing — in golf
  12. pound — a weight
  13. swing — to play on
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rock — music
  16. press — to push
  17. prune — to trim
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. press — newspapers
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. press — a publisher
  23. rock — a stone
  24. rock — to move gently

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