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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: tube · rule · patient · fork · cabinet · club

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. club — for golf
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. tube — the underground
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. rule — government
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. tube — a container
  14. club — a group
  15. fork — in a road
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. club — for dancing

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